Before conference realignment, USC Football’s hiring of Lincoln Riley was one of the biggest national stories in college football going into 2022.

The Trojans are bound for the Big ten in two years, but that still leaves a pair of seasons for Riley to win games in the Conference of Champions.

If their offense can be what it’s capable of, that should be a reachable goal for USC in the next two years.

On today’s episode of Locked On Pac-12, I examine the expectations for the Trojans in Year One with their new coach.

USC fans are hopeful he can orchestrate a drastic one-year turnaround after a 4-8 season in 2021 that will see them contend for a Pac-12 championship in 2022.

What’s the threshold for a disappointing first year in LA for Lincoln Riley?

On Monday’s show, I went through the Pac-12 coaches under the most pressure heading into 2022, with Herm Edwards at the top of the list.

I made an omission after listing Justin Wilcox and Chip Kelly behind ASU’s head coach, and that coach is arguably under more pressure than either Wilcox or Kelly as the season approaches in less than two months.

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—More from Spencer McLaughlin—

• McLaughlin: Winning Season a Challenging Goal for Huskies

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• McLaughlin: Will Buffs be Worst Pac-12 Team in 2022?

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• McLaughlin: Why Utah Football will be Over 8.5 wins in 2022

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• McLaughlin: Can UCLA football reach 10 wins in 2022?

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• McLaughlin: Predicting every game on USC’s 2022 Schedule

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• McLaughlin: Pac-12 Teams with the Biggest QB Questions

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• McLaughlin: The Complications of Pac-12 Realignment

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• McLaughlin: Will Major Pac-12 Football Commits Flip?

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• McLaughlin: Pac-12 Football Title Contenders in 2022

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• McLaughlin: George Kliavkoff is Not Backing Down

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• McLaughlin: The Latest Conference Realignment Speculation

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• McLaughlin: USC, UW Football Hot on Recruiting Trail

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• McLaughlin: Pac-12 Football Head Coaches Feeling Pressure

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• McLaughlin: Will Pushback on UCLA’s Move Matter?

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• McLaughlin: Pac-12 has one option left to make a big splash

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• McLaughlin: What does Breakdown of Big 12 Talks Signal?

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• McLaughlin: Is Conference Realignment affecting Recruiting?

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• McLaughlin: What comes Next for the Pac-12 Conference?

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• McLaughlin: Reactions to Dante Moore Committing to Ducks

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• McLaughlin: What is the Pac-12 Conference’s next move?

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• McLaughlin: Is the Big 12 a realistic landing spot for Oregon?

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• McLaughlin: Which Schools Could the Pac-12 Add?

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• McLaughlin: Pac-12 Must Keep Top Talent in West

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• McLaughlin: Can UW Football Re-Emerge as National Power?

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• McLaughlin: Will Stanford Exceed 4.5 Wins in 2022?

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• McLaughlin: Whittingham’s Deal a Good Sign for Pac-12

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• McLaughlin: Which Pac-12 School has Highest NIL Potential?

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• McLaughlin: UW Can & Must Compete on Recruiting Trail

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• McLaughlin: Lincoln Riley’s Affect on Pac-12 Recruiting

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• McLaughlin: Could Pac-12 HCs Reduce Roles in Recruiting?

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