Lincoln Riley Is Clay Helton 2.0? + Dirty Hit on Dante Moore & Hot Seat Coaches After Week 4

Oregon dominated USC without Dante Moore — who left in the first quarter after a dirty hit from USC linebacker Stephens that Lincoln Riley refused to address with any empathy at the postgame presser. The LA Times is now asking the same questions Bookstore Brew has been asking all season: is Lincoln Riley Clay Helton 2.0? Trent breaks down the numbers, the body language, the toxic culture, and the mounting case that USC needs to make a very expensive decision. In this episode: Lincoln Riley Is Clay Helton 2.0 Through 58 games, Lincoln Riley has gone 39-19 at USC. Clay Helton went 39-19 through the same number of games. The mediocrity is staggering. Against AP Top 25 opponents, Riley is 5-15. Clay Helton went 10-16. The win totals have regressed every year since his debut — 11-3, 8-5, 7-6, 9-4. They are 2-5 against Big Ten opponents across 2025 and 2026. And the buyout is rumored to be around $70 million — roughly 43% of USC's reported revenue. Indiana paid 33% of their total revenue to get rid of Tom Allen. The question is whether USC has the same stones. The Dante Moore Hit & Lincoln Riley's Body Language USC linebacker Stephens delivers a dirty hit on Dante Moore in the first quarter, stays on the sideline celebrating, and Lincoln Riley's response when asked why Stephens stayed on the sideline: "Because he's on our football team." No empathy. No "we'll look at the tape." Defensive, arrogant, and emblematic of the toxic culture the LA Times is now documenting. Oregon wins the game without their starting quarterback. Dan Lanning drops a postgame shot: if you want to win football games, come to Oregon. If you want to go to Chris Brown concerts, go to USC. Hot Seat Coaches After Week 4 Shane Beamer at South Carolina looks done — Dylan Stewart's suspension showed more integrity than Lincoln Riley has displayed all season. Mike Locksley at Maryland is still employed somehow. Greg Schiano at Rutgers feels like the end of an era. Brett Venables at Oklahoma is probably safe unless the bottom completely falls out. Bill Belichick at North Carolina is a watch. Dave Aranda at Baylor. And the Colorado situation remains one to monitor. Drop your hot seat pick in the comments. Kyle Whittingham Is Righting the Michigan Ship Michigan lost to Iowa but looked better than they have all season. Their defense is a dog. The Zeke Barry personal foul was one of the worst decisions in college football this year. If that defense gets just a little smarter, Michigan is dangerous — and they have Indiana, Ohio State, and Penn State on the schedule. Texas's Real Problem Is Sarkisian Texas won at Tennessee but Arch Manning was only good for one or two drives. True freshman Faison Brandon held the ball too long all day. The defense was excellent — Jay Money called it before the game. But Sarkisian's refusal to give up play calling is the story nobody is talking about enough. He had Quinn Ewers and the offense still didn't look great. The game may have passed him by as an offensive mind. John Sumrall & Florida Are for Real Florida's win over Ole Miss was impressive. Jaden Baugh is very good. The defense needs work but it's year one. Florida is a program that is going to start paying recruiting dividends very quickly with Miami also clicking — and Florida State is stuck behind both of them with financial problems and no crypto money in the budget. Joel Klatt Top 10 & Week 4 Reactions Joel Klatt moves his top 10 around again. Utah looked impressive at Iowa State. Alabama looks very good and faces Mississippi State this weekend — which means they probably win by 40. Jeremiah Smith was so good against Illinois that the Illinois defensive coordinator quit at halftime and told Brett Bielema he couldn't do it anymore. Indiana stays in the top 10. The AP poll will probably move Alabama above Indiana at some point — and Trent wants to know who Alabama has actually played. 🔗 Follow Trent: @STMcGee 🔗 Follow Kirkwood and Dunn: @KirkwoodandDunn 🛒 Shop: https://kirkwood-and-dunn-shop.fourth... 👍 Like, subscribe, and drop your hot seat coach pick in the comments! Chapters: Intro & The Clay Helton Comparison Lincoln Riley's Record Against Ranked Opponents The Win Total Regression Year by Year The $70 Million Buyout Question The Dante Moore Hit & Stephens' Celebration Lincoln Riley's Postgame Body Language Dan Lanning's Postgame Shot at USC The LA Times Asks the Same Questions Bob Chesney at UCLA Looks Better Than Riley in One Year Hot Seat Coaches After Week 4 Shane Beamer, Mike Locksley, Greg Schiano Kyle Whittingham Is Righting the Michigan Ship Texas's Real Problem Is Sarkisian John Sumrall & Florida Are for Real Florida State Is in Big Trouble Joel Klatt Top 10 Reaction Jeremiah Smith Makes the Illinois DC Quit Alabama vs Mississippi State This Weekend Listener Comments — Jay Money Gets His Flowers Bookstore Brew Mug Is Arriving 🎵 Music licensed through Soundstripe. Code: QZOWJAPXFJPINVGV