I Know Exactly Why Lincoln Riley Left for USC

Michigan finally beat the university of Ohio State on Saturday after almost a ten year drought. It was glorious and wonderful and they punched them in the mouth and I just kept putting my hands up in the air while saying, louder each time, "FINALLY!". This was the first time that either one of my children have seen Michigan win The Game. But I already expressed all my joy with my family and friends that are fans as well. We all shared that experience together. It was a great day to be a Wolverines fan. They still have work to do, but that win on Saturday was pretty great.

The big win is not the main point of my piece today. While basking in the glow, the college football world was hit with some big time news yesterday. And yes, I am still in a good mood today from the win. But Lincoln Riley, after getting beat in Bedlam, decided to leave Oklahoma for USC. When I first saw that he was a candidate I pushed it aside. But no more than about an hour later he was accepted the head coaching job at USC. He told his team, told the university and was on his way out the door of Oklahoma.

Again, I was stunned. He had something special going on at OU I thought. He has coached two Heisman winners. He has been to the CFP three times. He, until this season, has owned the Big 12. He is an ace recruiter and was luring some top level talent to come to Norman. But just like that, he is gone for what some consider greener pastures at USC.

California is a recruiting hot bed, that is for sure. The Pac 12 has an easier path to the CFP. No one other than Oregon has much top level talent. Riley is young and now about to live in LA. And apparently he is going to get PAID. I read that Oklahoma could not match what USC was offering, and that was one of the main reasons he decided to take the job. But still I have questions. I am a bit confused.

I do not understand why he would make what I consider a lateral move. The NFL seemed like the next step for him. But I have actually thought a lot about it today. I have had some time while I was grocery shopping and doing some chores to think about Riley's decision. First, the money thing is real. I know OU fans will call him all kinds of names, but any one of them would take a much higher paying job if they had the chance. That is human nature. I used to get mad at athletes and coaches when they would leave one job for another because it was paying them 2-5 million more dollars. Now I have no problem with it. Get paid. Take the money and run. If someone is going to give you all that guaranteed money, take it.

Then we have the Pac 12. That is an easier path to the playoff for sure. Who, outside of Oregon, is going to really challenge them? UCLA was better this year, but with Riley at USC, and his recruiting and offensive coaching prowess, they do not really stand a chance. Arizona State is okay, but they have some off field issues, and I could see Herm Edwards leaving sooner rather than later. Arizona has one win in their last 20 plus games. Washington was really down this year and they need to find a new head coach. Washington State had a decent year for them at 7-5. Oregon State is better, but they are still years away from truly competing. Stanford really took a nosedive this season. They will be better, but not at USC or Oregon's level. Colorado has been down for a few years. Utah is solid and could contend, but they are not very good offensively. And Cal is stuck in neutral. The move to the Pac 12 makes sense.

Riley also gets to live in LA now. No disrespect to Norman, Oklahoma, but LA is a lot of people's dream destination. It isn't for me, but I am in the minority. The weather is beautiful and it never really gets cold there.

I think the biggest reason for the move, something I forgot until a ton of people brought it up yesterday, Oklahoma is about to move to the SEC. If Riley thought the Big 12 was tough, he was in for a rude awakening in the SEC. He was going to have to compete for recruits, and on the field, with teams like Texas A&M, Alabama, LSU, Auburn, Kentucky, Georgia, Tennessee, Florida, Ole Miss, Arkansas, Mississippi State, and on and on. That is no joke. I may not be a fan of the SEC, and the sports media is totally biased for the SEC, but that is one hell of a battle on and off the field. The Big 12 was easy, but the Pac 12 is even easier. I do think Riley saw the writing on the wall, especially after a "letdown" of a year for him at Oklahoma. They went 10-2. They will not be a playoff team. They had to switch QB's midway through the season. I was way off on that team. They had so many problems, and I think Riley figured, if they cannot win the Big 12 this season, how on Earth was he going to compete at the highest level in the SEC. The Pac 12 was much more intriguing to him. I think that is the main reason why he chose USC over LSU or staying at Oklahoma. He did not want to fight to compete in the SEC. It was too daunting a task for him. I agree with him taking the money and living in LA, but I also think he was very afraid of having to face tough competition week in and week out, and on the recruiting trail. That is why he picked USC.

I will be interested to see how many more changes come, but this one was a big, big deal. This changes a lot of things in college football, and I am very curious to see how Riley does in a new conference with a storied program.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Bob Stoops Retirement Comes with a lot of Unanswered Questions

There is a new sign on Bob Stoops Old Office

Because Ty is the most boss of all internet writers he refuses to stop creating awesome content, even when he is on a family vacation. His loquaciousness will be blunted while he enjoys his undisclosed tropical getaway. Each piece will be some quick thoughts on some current things going on, nothing political of course.

Yesterday, in very shocking news, Bob Stoops suddenly retired. That makes 2 pretty famous coaches this week that have either walked away or "resigned" from high profile jobs. You can read my Thad Matta thoughts from earlier this week. But, this whole Bob Stoops thing really threw me for a loop.

Stoops had a very, very good team coming back from a decent season last year. Yeah, he lost Semaji Perine and Dede Westbrook, but they still have Baker Mayfield, a Heisman front runner, and it's Oklahoma, they are one of the "reload, not rebuild" teams I always talk about. Oklahoma was also, as they have been for about a decade now, the odds on favorites to win the Big 12, and possibly go to the College Football Playoff this season. They are to the Big 12 in football what Kansas is to basketball. If they do not win the Big 12, I am always shocked.

For Stoops to just walk away, at only 56 years old, after 18 years of some really good football, I just can't seem to wrap my head around it. Sure, his family has past heart issues, and the Oklahoma fan base can be rabid and unforgiving, and, no matter how good you may look in the preseason, there is always the Alabama monster out there, but why so sudden? Does he have heart issues? Is there a possible violation that we may not know about? Was he giving a Thad Matta ultimatum? Does he truly want to "live a life"? Or, is there some other high profile job he may be angling for in a year or 2, a la what Urban Meyer did after he left Florida due to "health concerns", only to take one year off and jump on the University of Ohio State board. I feel like it is the last question, but I will quickly answer the others first.

I do not think he has any type of health concerns. He has been at Oklahoma for almost 2 decades, so if he did truly have a health scare, we would have heard about it already. The violation thing, who knows. Every big time team bends the rules to get some of the best players in the country to constantly go there. I am not aware of any possible violations at Oklahoma, but they did have the whole Joe Mixon thing last year, so I wonder if there is more of that horrible stuff going on that they are trying to cover up. That would be truly awful. I do not think he was given an ultimatum because, as I have already stated, his team is stacked this year. They are going to be lights out on offense, and I feel like they will be much improved on defense. They are the clear cut favorites in the Big 12, and he has won 10 plus games 14 of his 18 years there. He's earned the right to leave when he wants. Oklahoma was nothing when Stoops took over and look at them now. There is no way he was told he has to win the title this year or he was going to be let go.

As far as the "live a life" thing that he said, I feel like this is the only life he knows. He comes from a family of coaches, and he has basically been around football as a player and a coach his entire life. I fully understand if he wants to go be with his family, but to say that now, going into a season where Oklahoma will be a real threat, I don't buy it. Also, his family seems to fully understand and not mind being the wife and kids of a coach. That is a taxing job, and they have stood by his side his whole career.

Now, the last question, the big question. Is there another, possibly higher profile job out there that he may want in a year or two, if that school doesn't vastly improve? I read it on 247sports.com, and I think it may be true, that if the Notre Dame job opens up, Stoops and the people there would want to hire him. I feel like it is setting up exactly like the Urban Meyer situation. I don't think Notre Dame will be any real threat, and I feel like the higher ups at Notre Dame have grown weary of Brian Kelly's demeanor and the way he grates on players and fans. The team has gotten worse every year since Alabama crushed them in the title game, and Kelly is throwing everyone under the bus, blaming anyone in earshot, except himself. I feel like they want Bob Stoops there real bad, and his sudden retirement sets that up very nicely. I also think Stoops kind of wants a big time job like Notre Dame as well. Oklahoma is great now, due to Stoops, but they are not historic, like Notre Dame. I feel like Stoops wants to go to a school like that to build up his personal resume. He is a great coach, and if he can go to Notre Dame and win as big there as he did at Oklahoma, he'd become legendary. That is where I feel like all this is headed.

Time will tell, but for Stoops to leave Oklahoma so abruptly, that just doesn't sit right with me. We'll see.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He is thinking about taking a detour to Norman after his vacation. Do they still need a coach? Oh, somebody has that job. Is the Buckeye job still available?

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