Analyst Tabs Lincoln Riley Hire: 'Most Impactful Of Last Cycle'

Was USC hiring former Oklahoma head coach Lincoln Riley the most impactful one of this past cycle? According to 247Sports analyst Josh Pate, the decision to bring Riley to Southern California was a 'grand slam'.

“What part of the hire isn’t a grand slam," Pate said.

"In every department this is a grand slam hire. It establishes a track record now, that you haven’t had at head coach. You had a guy that can sell hope, but you have not had a guy in the head coaching position at USC that could tell you, I’ve already done it," said Pate.

"It would take some mental gymnastics to not call that the biggest and easily most impactful hire of this last cycle."

"In every department this is a grand slam hire."@LateKickJosh ranks Lincoln Riley to @USC_FB as the No. 1 new head coaching hire ✌️ pic.twitter.com/XYSwzpoSAa
— 247Sports (@247Sports) February 25, 2022

USC announced the hiring of Lincoln Riley on November 28. Riley previously spent five seasons at Oklahoma led the Sooners four New Year’s Six bowls and four Big 12 titles.

“I am truly excited to come to USC and join the Trojan Family as its new head football coach. USC has an unparalleled football tradition with tremendous resources and facilities, and the administration has made a deep commitment to winning. I look forward to honoring that successful tradition and building on it. The pieces are in place for us to build the program back to where it should be and the fans expect it to be. We will work hard to develop a physical football team that is dominant on both lines of scrimmage, and has a dynamic balanced offense and a stout aggressive defense," Riley said in a press release.

“I want to thank the administration, coaches and players at Oklahoma for five incredible years as their head coach. We accomplished some great things there and I will always cherish my time as a Sooner.”

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