Baker Mayfield, Jalen Hurts, Kyler Murray, Caleb Williams. What do all of these Quarterbacks have in common? Each were Heisman finalists (3 won the award) and were the Starting Quarterback in a Lincoln Riley led offense. Nobody will argue the offensive numbers or the prolific schemes on that side of the ball, but none of those Quarterbacks ever even secured a single playoff victory.
In the most recent case of Caleb Williams, USC dropped to 7-3 on the season Saturday. In a game where your offense puts up 312 passing yards, 203 rushing yards and 42 points, you have to find a way to win. I fully understand the barnburners we see in the Pac-12, but at this point, defense clearly isn’t a priority for this program.
The larger issue is, this is becoming a pattern for programs Lincoln Riley is a part of. Nobody will ever question his offensive genius, but not every coach is suited to lead both sides of the ball. Even Baker Mayfield, when asked about this on the Pat McAfee show, alluded to the fact that Riley is not concerned with the defensive performance.
In 2017, it was the Rose Bowl loss to Georgia, 54-48.
- 289 Yards Passing, 246 Yards Rushing
In 2018, it was the loss to Texas, 48-45 & loss in the Orange Bowl to Alabama, 45-34.
- 310 Yards Passing, 222 Yards Rushing (Texas Game)
- 308 Yards Passing, 163 Yards Rushing (Alabama Game)
In 2019 it was the upset loss to Kansas State, 48-41 & Peach Bowl loss to LSU, 63-28.
- 395 Yards Passing, 102 Yards Rushing (Kansas State Game)
- 225 Yards Passing, 97 Yards Rushing (LSU Game)
We are now in the midst of another Heisman Quarterback who will never see a playoff win, or in this case, a Pac-12 Title chance. It’s understandable that this lack of emphasis on defense may happen in the first year(s) as a head coach, but at some point, you have to make a switch in philosophies. Riley has seen this model fail to garner postseason results year after year, and he’s been nothing but complacent with the model.
How many coaches are lucky enough to have an elite, Heisman-caliber Quarterback leading their team? Nonetheless, 4 in 6 years. When the great coaches have someone of Caleb’s talent, they get the job done and secure postseason success. Just to name a recent few:
- Jimbo Fisher & Jameis Winston – 2013
- Dabo Swinney & Watson/Lawrence – 2016 & 2018
- Ed Orgeron(Joe Brady) & Joe Burrow – 2019
Ed Orgeron and Jimbo Fisher are by no means on the level of a Nick Saban, Mack Brown, etc. but when they had a generational talent at the Quarterback position, they were able to turn that into success. I understand some of Riley’s Oklahoma teams were outmatched by the dynasties that were Alabama and Clemson, but this result at USC is inexcusable. At a certain point, the tides need to change towards prioritizing defense.
Lincoln Riley did take a key step in firing his Defensive Coordinator, Alex Grinch, but it is too little, too late for this season. Maybe this was the wake-up call he needed; however, we’ve seen his defense let him down before and the pattern has yet to change. There’s no reason to suspect it ever will now.
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