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Kirk Herbstreit believes viewers, voters still have ‘one foot out’ on USC, Lincoln Riley

Untitled design (2)by: Sam Gillenwater10/14/25samdg_33
USC HC Lincoln Riley
Jayne Kamin-Oncea | Imagn Images

This week in the AP Poll, USC is ranked as high as they’ve been all season at No. 20. However, having not been any higher this season despite being 5-1, Kirk Herbstreit thinks it’s a reflection of where the sport is when it comes to their view on the Trojans at this point.

Appearing on ‘The Dan Patrick Show’ on Tuesday, Herbstreit spoke on how quiet it has been around with Southern Cal this season despite being off to their best start in 2025 since the arrival of Lincoln Riley in 2022. He thinks voters continue to hold that program at arm’s length, including this week even off an impressive win over No. 15 Michigan as they now go to play in a rivalry game against No. 13 Notre Dame in South Bend. Even he feels that way too when it comes to ‘SC.

“I think what’s happened to USC, when it comes to AP voters and maybe even the Coaches Poll, is they’re kind of one foot in and one foot out,” said Herbstreit. “You know, it’s been a long time since USC has been a relevant, top-ten team. And I think, more often than not, a program like USC, with its tradition, gets the benefit of the doubt when it comes to preseason rankings. And, the last few years with Lincoln Riley there, they’ve not proven to be the team that could adjust to the Big Ten and become a perennial power. So, people are kind of like, okay, let’s wait and see.

“And I still feel like, even though they beat Michigan fairly convincingly? I still feel like, okay, okay, okay, let’s see how they do at Notre Dame, let’s see what they do at Notre Dame – then I can say, okay, Lincoln Riley has got them going. That’s my take on where USC is.”

USC has been among the best teams in the country over the first half of the season. They sit at 5-1 overall and 3-1 in the Big Ten, with their one loss coming at 34-32 on a walk-off field goal in a Top-25 matchup on the road against No. 23 Illinois in Champaign. However, they’ve since followed that up with the 31-13 win over No. 15 Michigan on Saturday, which represented one of the better wins of this tenure over four years. They’re also doing it with a top-three offense in the nation in both scoring at 45.5 points and in total at 552.3 yards per game.

Still, as Patrick rightly pointed out, there’s just been no real buzz this season about that team in Los Angeles. USC is currently third in the conference standings, behind only No. 1 Ohio State and No. 3 Indiana, and, with just the one loss, is very much in the mix to be in contention for the College Football Playoff, especially with a pair of big road opportunities the next three weeks against No. 13 Notre Dame on Saturday before playing No. 25 Nebraska on November 1st. That’s not to mention an opportunity against No. 8 Oregon in the season’s penultimate game in Eugene. However, even with that playoff path there for them, the Trojans, despite being the brand they have, have attained little interest, whether in conference or nationally, for whatever reason.

Southern Cal may not be getting much attention at this moment. But, the Trojans could surely come back to LA with some on Saturday night if they were to improve their postseason hopes, by ending those of the Fighting Irish as well, with a win.