​When Lincoln Riley arrived at USC in 2021, he was widely regarded as one of the elite coaches in college football. His initial season in Los Angeles did little to undermine that perception. He steered the Trojans to a Pac-12 Championship Game appearance and secured a berth in a New Year’s Six bowl, signaling that he could guide a program back toward national relevance. Yet, following that auspicious start, the trajectory has derailed. From 2023 through 2025, USC has endured three consecutive seasons that many would call undeniable disappointments. In the evolving landscape of college football, the question arises: where does Riley fit in the Big Ten coaching hierarchy today? USA TODAY Sports has offered a verdict that many would find hard to dispute at this moment: Riley is positioned outside the Big Ten’s top five head coaches.
Paul Myerberg captured the arc of Riley’s national standing succinctly: “Riley might’ve been near the top of the list among all coaches nationally as recently as 2020, when he wrapped up his fourth playoff appearance in as many years at Oklahoma. Things have been much rockier at USC, which hit a high with an 11-win 2022 season in Riley’s debut but has since gone 24-15 with just one ranked finish. But things are starting to look up after USC went 7-2 in the Big Ten last year and then inked one of the nation’s top recruiting classes.” That assessment underscores how quickly perceptions can shift, especially as the program navigates the challenges of a conference transition and a demanding schedule.
Within the Big Ten’s coaching landscape, Indiana’s Curt Cignetti is positioned as arguably the best coach in the conference, a claim that many would accept with little debate. Beyond him, there are additional coaches who merit consideration among the upper echelon. Ryan Day at Ohio State and Dan Lanning at Oregon are widely viewed as being in the top tier, and most observers would place them within the conference’s elite.
From there, the discussion grows more nuanced. Kirk Ferentz has spent three decades building a durable program at Iowa, often achieving solid results with comparatively fewer resources and star players. His long tenure and track record add weight to arguments that he belongs in the conversation for the conference’s upper echelon, even if recent years have tempered some of that aura. Kyle Whittingham, heading Utah, joined the Big Ten after Utah’s move, and his résumé—especially when comparing pre-conference performance to results in the new league—suggests he should be regarded as a stronger coach than Riley in this particular moment.
Given those assessments, it seems clear that Whittingham deserves to be ranked ahead of Riley, with Ferentz presenting a more arguable case depending on the criteria one emphasizes. On balance, Lincoln Riley has not conclusively earned a top-five standing in the Big Ten yet. The evaluation hinges on forthcoming performance, particularly in the upcoming season, as well as continued development under the pressures and opportunities presented by a league that demands consistent excellence and adaptability.
In sum, while Riley elevated USC’s profile early in his tenure and demonstrated occasional flashes of national competitiveness, the recent results leave him outside the conference’s traditional top five for now. The next season, with its new environment and recruiting momentum, is pivotal in determining whether he can reclaim a place among the Big Ten’s premier coaches. This assessment reflects contemporary judgments surrounding Riley’s standing and acknowledges that the door remains open for him to climb back into the upper tier if he delivers sustained success in the near term.