Is Michigan Prepping To Poach Lincoln Riley From USC After Sherrone Moore Firing?
USC coach mentioned by prominent reporters as Wolverines hunt for new head coach following Sherrone Moore firing
The Sherrone Moore saga has been shocking, to say the least. The rapid fall of an established coach at the highest levels of college football. The devastating fallout from the inappropriate relationship being exposed, with Moore being charged with felony home invasion and threatening to hurt himself. His appearance in court afterward.
Obviously, football concerns are secondary in a situation like this. But that's the other side of this extraordinary story; the Michigan Wolverines, one of the country's best and biggest football programs, is now suddenly on the hunt for a new head coach. And it comes just a few weeks after one of the craziest college football coaching carousels we've ever seen.
The Lane Kiffin drama with Ole Miss and LSU now feels like such a quaint story from the distant past, doesn't it?
So where does Michigan go from here? The Wolverines had a solid, if unspectacular season in 2025. They were 9-3, losing basically all of their "tough" matchups; on the road at USC, on the road at Oklahoma, and at home against the Ohio State Buckeyes. That's not quite up to the standard set during the Jim Harbaugh era, especially with the hype surrounding freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood.
There's plenty of room for improvement for a National Championship-level program. And one name keeps getting mentioned as a possibility to get them back to those heights: Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley.
Head coach Lincoln Riley of the USC Trojans. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
Lincoln Riley Could Fit At Michigan, If He's Interested
That might be odd to say, considering Riley's time at USC hasn't exactly gone smoothly. He was 7-5 in the 2023 regular season, while Michigan won a title, then 6-6 in the 2024 regular season. Though those results were a bit misleading, as the Trojans routinely lost games they led in the fourth quarter.
Though there's reason to believe Riley could return to prominence sooner rather than later. SC improved to 9-3 in 2025, with a win over Moore's Wolverines team. The Trojans were in close games at Oregon and Notre Dame, before special teams disasters ended all hopes of an upset. Still, they were one win away from a potential playoff berth at 10-2.
Then, after finally getting their NIL situation figured out and hiring a top-level general manager, they brought in the consensus No. 1 recruiting class in the country. USC is clearly a program on the rise, and with that class and the likelihood of a strong transfer portal group in the coming months, the Trojans are expected to be a legitimate top-10 team moving forward.
That's where Michigan fits in. Riley now has experience coaching in the Big Ten. His offenses routinely rank in the top handful in the country. And the Wolverines have shown an ability to consistently attract top defensive talent, the type that hasn't always gone to USC in the post-Pete Carroll era.
Riley was mentioned for the Florida job before that got filled. But Michigan is a different level, with NIL support as high, or higher, than anyone in the country. They're one of a handful of true blueblood programs in the sport, routinely selling out the largest stadium in the country. And if he gets a raise, he might view Michigan as an upgrade and "easier" lift than SC.
It's unclear whether there's interest on one, or both sides, but Riley's name has been floated by any number of prominent college football reporters and analysts. Michigan may choose to promote from within, or find someone with more history as a "Michigan Man." But if they look outside of the box, Riley might make sense. Stay tuned.