Lincoln Riley Closing In On Coaching Staff Addition

The USC Trojans are on the verge of hiring a special teams coordinator from the Nebraska Cornhuskers.

Oct 1, 2022; Los Angeles, California, USA; USC Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley applauds after a touchdown in the first half against the Arizona State Sun Devils at United Airlines Field at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

The USC Trojans have made a lot of additions to their team this year. Whether it's from the transfer portal or through the high school ranks, yet it's been a quiet offseason for their coaching staff apart from the departure of defensive coordinator D'Anton Lynn.

Now, the Trojans are reportedly closing in on making their first addition to the coaching staff of the offseason with Nebraska Cornhuskers special teams coordinator being hired for the same position at USC. Matt Zenitz of 247Sports is reporting that the Trojans are on the verge of hiring Ekeler away from the Cornhuskers.

A Return To Los Angeles

Apr 13, 2013; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Southern California Trojans linebackers coach Mike Ekeler during the spring game at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Ekeler has been a special teams coordinator for four other programs during his coaching career. He's been a special teams coordinator at Georgia, Kansas, North Texas, Tennessee, and Nebraska.

It would be a return to Los Angeles for Ekeler, who spent one season as the Trojans' linebacker coach in 2013 under Lane Kiffin and Ed Orgeron. If the Trojans pull off the hire, Ekeler would be the second special teams coordinator to be hired after Ryan Dougherty was promoted to the position in 2024.

Interestingly enough, Connor Morrissette of 247Sports reported that Dougherty is expected to be retained by the Trojans in a similar capacity.

Current USC special teams coordinator Ryan Dougherty is expected to stay on as an analyst/assistant special teams coach for next season," Morrisette said.

The History Of Special Teams Coordinators Under Riley

Oct 28, 2023; Berkeley, California, USA; USC Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley walks on the field before a game against the California Golden Bears at California Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images | Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

Riley has had an interesting thought process when it comes to hiring a special teams coordinator. During an interview with Trojans Live in 2023, he explained why he didn't see the need to hire a special teams coordinator at that time.

"Offensive guys are doing offense, and defensive guys are doing defense. Special teams is typically somewhere between one to three periods a day, and there's that one time where everybody is working on special teams," Riley said. "The thing that I never liked about a special teams coordinator is that what's he doing the other 75 percent of practice?"

When the limit for the amount of countable coaches was lifted by the NCAA, Riley changed his tune on hiring a full-time special teams coordinator when he elevated Ryan Doughtery from analyst to coordinator in 2024.

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Current State Of Trojans' Special Teams Unit

Sep 13, 2025; West Lafayette, Indiana, USA; Southern California Trojans kicker Ryon Sayeri (48) kicks a field goal during the first quarter against the Purdue Boilermakers at Ross-Ade Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Marc Lebryk-Imagn Images | Marc Lebryk-Imagn Images

If the Trojans are able to close the deal and bring in Ekeler, he would be stepping into a fairly decent situation.

As things stand, USC is returning their starting kicker from this past season in Ryon Sayeri. He had an excellent season in his first year starting by nailing 21 of 25 field goal attempts, including a 54-yarder in the Oct. 10 win over Michigan.

At punter, the Trojans brought in Memphis transfer Lachlan Carrigan. He averaged 43.3 yards per punt on 46 attempts for the Tigers last season as a freshman. He's expected to compete for the stgarting gig to replace Sam Johnson, the Trojans' 2025 starter whose eligibility expired.