LSU Football could deal a massive blow to USC and Lincoln Riley in Week One

In his first year at USC, Lincoln Riley built up a ton of goodwill turning the Trojans around with a 10-1 record heading into the Pac 12 Championship. Then his Trojans defense collapsed in the Pac 12 championship showing an inability to tackle causing the Trojans to fall from 4th to 8th in the College Football Playoff rankings. This past season the defensive struggles we saw parts of in 2022 were on full display as the Trojans went 8-5.

Riley struggled in the Pac-12 last season, the Trojans now join the loaded new version of the Big Ten. The Trojans enter the season ranked 23rd but, have ranked matchups against LSU, Michigan, Penn State, and Notre Dame all looming on the schedule.

Heading into the season, Riley is already facing pressure to put up results in year three from Trojan fans and the media.

The LSU Football team will face USC to kick off both teams seasons as both teams replace a ton of pieces. If LSU Football wins in week one, they could deal a massive blow to Lincoln Riley and start to warm his seat.

We already know that Riley went to USC as he wasn't a fan of Oklahoma joining the SEC, it's also been reported that Lincoln Riley tried to get this game taken off of the schedule. Beating the Trojans would set USC off on a tough path as they'd only be able to lose once more to still have a chance at the Playoff. If LSU beats USC putting up a ton of points it'll show that Riley still can't field a great defense.

Time for the 2021 Coaching Class to perform

The 2021 Coaching Carousel was one of the craziest cycles we've seen in the sport. From that class, Steve Sarkisian has made the Playoff and Kalen DeBoer was in the National Title game and is now at Alabama. Billy Napier enters the season with an incredibly hot seat while Lincoln Riley faces pressure to perform. Brian Kelly, Brent Venables, and Marcus Freeman have all shown promise but, they're all seeking Playoff appearances.

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