Lincoln Riley has a new outlook as USC opens spring practice

Miller Moss is a top candidate to be USC’s starting quarterback next season. (Ashley Landis / Associated Press)

He’s the quarterback whisperer. The Heisman maker. The offensive mastermind. But on Tuesday, when USC opened spring practice, Lincoln Riley was the defensive observer.

The head coach who built his career as a quarterback maestro watched every defensive drill intently during the brief media viewing period of Tuesday’s practice, signaling a new era for USC quarterbacks that goes beyond just the field.

While replacing Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams, USC is also making a change in the meeting room, where, for the first time since 2010 when he got his first coordinator job, Riley is not coaching quarterbacks. He shifted Luke Huard to quarterbacks coach after the third-year assistant coached inside receivers for the previous two seasons.

Huard will oversee the quarterback competition between incumbent Miller Moss and redshirt sophomore transfer Jayden Maiava while Riley takes a step back to manage a program in transition with a new defense.

“When you’ve done something for 20 straight years it’s a little strange, but I’ve enjoyed it, I have,” Riley said. “I feel like it’s allowed me to be more present in other areas of the program.”

Read more: Four things to watch as USC begins spring football practice

Riley has bounced in and out of various position group meetings during the offseason. He’s keeping an eye on the offensive line with redshirt senior Jonah Monheim moving to center. The depth at tackle, where sophomore Elijah Paige and redshirt junior Mason Murphy are the only two other players with significant game experience at the position, is “a little bit of a concern,” Riley said Tuesday.

With almost a brand-new defensive staff installing a new system, Riley proudly said he has not missed a…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/lincoln-riley-outlook-usc-opens-035604826.html

Author : LA Times

Publish date : 2024-03-20 03:56:04

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