USC paid jaw-dropping amount to Lincoln Riley in his first year

Apr 23, 2022; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Southern California Trojans coach Lincoln Riley during the spring game at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

USC paid a jaw-dropping amount to Lincoln Riley in his first year with the school.

The Trojans made the surprising hire of Riley in late 2021, and his first season coaching the football team came in 2022. The LA Times got a hold of the federal tax returns filed by USC that showed how much Riley was paid between July 1, 2022 and June 30, 2023.

According to the Times, USC reported to the government that they paid Riley $19.7 million from 2022-2023. Riley received just over $10 million in base pay and benefits. The remaining amount was listed as “other related compensation.” $4.5 million of the remaining $9.6 million was Riley’s buyout from Oklahoma.

Not only did USC pay Riley nearly $20 million, but the school also paid previous head coach Clay Helton nearly $4 million as severance. Helton later became the head coach at Georgia Southern. USC also paid around $4 million to bring in Riley’s preferred defensive coordinator Alex Grinch. The school fired Grinch last season.

Adding it all up, USC’s investment in Riley and his preferred coaches cost the school around $28 million. They were rewarded with an 11-3 season in 2022. But then the team slipped and finished 8-5 last season — certainly not what the school is paying such big bucks for.

Riley does think he has fixed one major issue this offseason. USC is hoping that is the case.