Lincoln Riley's buyout details: Here's how much it will cost USC to fire head coach

Lincoln Riley's buyout details: Here's how much it will cost USC to fire head coach

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Lincoln Riley's buyout details: Here's how much it will cost USC to fire head coach

Lincoln Riley's buyout details: Here's how much it will cost USC to fire head coach originally appeared on The Sporting News.
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The USC Trojans are still in the College Football Playoff hunt as the midway point of the season is nearly upon us. But with remaining games still to come against Penn State, Ohio State, Indiana and UCLA, the Trojans' margin for era if it wants to make the CFP is razor thin. 

As such, much of the attention surrounding USC's struggles center around fifth-year head coach Lincoln Riley. He has failed to coach up to expectations in Los Angeles, and as such, his job security has come into question. 

Here's a look at Riley's contract with the Trojans to see how much it might cost the school to potentially move on from the head coach this season.  

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Lincoln Riley buyout details

Unlike typical coach salaries, USC being a private school means they don't have to publicly disclose Riley's salary.  The exact dollar amount of Riley's buyout is not publicly known, but there have been some reported estimates. According to Sports Illustrated's Bryan Fischer, the buyout is more than $50 million. Ross Dellenger of Yahoo Sports estimated that it's around $60 million. 

USA Today's Matt Hayes estimates the figure is closer to $70 million if USC were to fire Riley this season.  

MORE: USC's win over Washington didn't do much to quiet Lincoln Riley's critics

Lincoln Riley contract

Upon Riley's arrival at USC in 2022, he he reportedly signed a 10-year deal worth around $110 million. According to On3Sports, his salary for 2026 is $11.5 million, making him the sixth-highest paid coach in the country. 

Lincoln Riley USC record

Riley is 40-19 across his five seasons at USC. He has yet to win a conference championship with the Trojans, and they have not made it to the CFP. Across his head coaching career, Riley is 92-30 overall dating back to his time at Oklahoma from 2017-21.

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USC attendance issues

The Trojans have dealt with attendance issues all season long. During Week Zero's opener against San Jose State, the empty stands prompted USC to release a bizarre statement describing "factors that affected attendance."

Riley called the attention over USC's small attendance a "false narrative."

During USC's next home game against Fresno State, the attendance wasn't much better: 

After Oregon beat USC in L.A. on Sept. 26, Ducks head coach Dan Lanning  joked that his team coming to town helped fill the L.A. Coliseum.

Lincoln Riley age

Lincoln Riley is 43 years old.

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