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Cowboys' Ceedee Lamb Unleashes Opinion on Lincoln Riley Leaving OU

Lamb: "It definitely surprised me, a lot..."

USC sent shockwaves throughout the college football landscape with the unexpected hire of former Oklahoma head coach Lincoln Riley. Trojan athletic director Mike Bohn announced the news in a press release on Sunday, Nov. 28.

“We are ecstatic to announce Lincoln Riley as our new head coach and welcome his wife Caitlin and their daughters Sloan and Stella to the Trojan Family,” said Bohn.

“Lincoln is the rarest combination of extraordinary person and elite football coach. His successes and offensive accolades as a head coach the past five years are astonishing. Lincoln will recruit relentlessly, develop his players on and off the field, and implement a strong culture in which the program will operate with the highest level of integrity and professionalism.

Lincoln is universally considered one of the brightest and most talented football coaches in the nation, and the fact that he chose USC is a testament to the strength of our brand, the power of the Trojan Family, and the leadership of our university. This is for our current players, our former players, our alumni, our fans, and our entire university community. Our time is now.” 

USA TODAY 

USA TODAY 

Many were shocked by the hire, including former OU coaches and players. Cowboys wide receiver Ceedee Lamb, who played at Oklahoma under Riley revealed that he was 'surprised' by the news.

"It definitely surprised me, a lot. ... I'm excited for him. Can't wait to see this new opportunity and how this team is going to look. I'm definitely still a fan of Oklahoma. But I'm definitely excited to see what he does."

Riley admitted that he found out about USC's interest late Saturday night following Oklahoma's 37–33 loss to Oklahoma State.

"We got home late Saturday night, early Sunday morning, and got the information from USC that there was some real interest," Riley said. "We talked a little bit about it early that morning, slept for a couple of hours...it came together quickly, but in this day and age in college football, it kind of has to if it's going to, it's just the way of the world right now."

Riley compiled a 55–10 record at Oklahoma, reaching the College Football Playoff three times.

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