Miami, Indiana’s Success Puts Added Pressure on Lincoln Riley at USC

The 2021-2022 coaching carousel was one of the most memorable ones in college football history. Several high-profile jobs became available, including two of the sports most storied programs in Miami and USC.

Hurricanes coach Mario Cristobal left Oregon in December 2021 to return to his alma mater, Miami, where he won two national championships as a player. Ironically, he left the Ducks before their loss to Oklahoma in the Alamo Bowl, the school Lincoln Riley had left the month prior for USC.

USC Trojans Miami Hurricanes Indiana Hoosiers Lincoln Riley Mario Cristobal Curt Cignetti National Championship Big Ten — Jan 8, 2026; Glendale, AZ, USA; Miami Hurricanes head coach Mario Cristobal against the Mississippi Rebels during the 2026 Fiesta Bowl and semifinal game of the College Football Playoff at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Cristobal’s tenure with the Canes got off to a rough start with 5-7 and 7-6 finishes in each of his first two seasons. Miami just missed out on the College Football Playoffs last season after a loss to Syracuse in the regular season finale gave them a second loss and kept them out of the ACC title game.

In year four, Cristobal led his program to its first berth in the College Football Playoff, and after three straight wins, the Hurricanes will square off against Indiana for a national championship at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami on Monday.

Cristobal becomes the third coach from the 2021-2022 coaching cycle to reach a national championship, joining Notre Dame’s Marcus Freeman and Washington's Kalen DeBoer, who has since moved onto to become the Alabama coach.

Miami and USC have several similarities. They are both in the center of recruiting hotbeds, play in luxuries cities, not college towns where the entire city revolves around the game on Saturdays in the fall and have a rich history of winning national championships.

It’s competitive just to be relevant in your own city, but there’s any easy way to ascend in the pecking order, win and Cristobal has done that.

He’s recruited a high level, and the player development has shown up. They’re physical in the trenches, controlling the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball and are very athletic on the perimeter.

It’s a combination of veterans, such as seventh-year quarterback Carson Beck and junior defensive lineman Rueben Bain and offensive tackle Francis Mauigoa and stellar freshmen such as receiver Malachi Toney and safety Bryce Fitzgerald.

Curt Cignetti Changes Indiana Program Overnight

When Indiana hired Curt Cignetti in November 2023, it hardly made national headlines, but his statement "I win. Google me," did. He quickly proved himself to be right, achieving the program's first-ever 11-win season and leading the Hoosiers to the College Football Playoff in year one.

In year two, the Hoosiers have been a freight train and established themselves as the premier team in the Big Ten in 2025. They went into Eugene in October and handed Oregon a 10-point loss en route to defeating the defending national champions Ohio State in the Big Ten title game.

It’s been business as usual in the College Football Playoff with a thrashing of Alabama in the Rose Bowl and then an annihilation of Oregon in their second matchup in the Peach Bowl to reach the national championship as the No. 1 seed.

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Indiana has hit big in the transfer portal, most notably landing Heisman Trophy winning quarterback and future No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza and star cornerback D’Angelo Ponds, a First Team All-American selection and defensive in the Rose Bowl and Peach Bowl.

Cignetti proved in the NIL and transfer portal era that you can change a program instantly with elite level coaching, leadership and discipline. A veteran roster and physicality in the trenches.

Player development has been unbelievable for the Hoosiers. They don't have a single five-star recruit on the roster and just seven, four-star recruits. They defeated an Oregon team twice that has six, five-star recruits and 52, four-star recruits. The difference against Miami is very similar but that hasn't mattered.

And Indiana is a program that isn't going anywhere. They have been big winners in the portal, ranking seventh in the 247Sports Transfer Portal Rankings. Billionaire Mark Cuban is funding NIL for his alma mater. Not to mention, Cignetti has no interest in the multiple NFL head coaching vacancies or other college jobs.

Lincoln Riley’s Tenure at USC

Two things can be true. USC is ascending as a program but the Riley era has largely been a disappointment, which adds more pressure on the 42-year-old coach heading into his fifth season.

It’s been a roller coaster through four seasons. Riley had led Oklahoma to three consecutive Big 12 conference championships and College Football Playoff appearances in the four-team format. The expectation was that he would at the very least replicate similar success with the Trojans and bring them back to national prominence but that hasn't happened.

USC came close to reaching the playoffs in Riley’s first season in 2022 behind Heisman Trophy winning quarterback Caleb Williams. An 11-1 regular season had the Trojans one win away from the four-team playoff but a loss to Utah in the Pac-12 title game ended those hopes.

Southern Cal then had back-to-back seasons with a drop in the win column, before finishing with a 9-3 mark in 2025. While it’s a great step in the right direction, it’s time to get everything rolling quickly.

There’s a higher standard of excellence that is expected with certain jobs in college football and USC is one of them.

Programs that began in the same position as the Trojans four years ago have far surpassed them and for a team like Indiana, it didn't take them very long to build a championship team and leapfrog in the Big Ten hierarchy.

Curt Cignetti Changes Indiana Program Overnight

Lincoln Riley’s Tenure at USC

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