USC's Lincoln Riley says he isn't leaving as No. 2 Ohio State heads to the Coliseum

Lincoln Riley used his Tuesday media session to answer the questions about his job that have followed USC since its loss in Madison. He told reporters he has had plenty of chances to leave, that Los Angeles is where he wants to be, and that he is "the right person to be here," according to USA TODAY Sports. ClutchPoints reported that the remarks were aimed at rumors tying Riley to other openings. It also pointed out that what Riley wants does not settle what the university will decide about its coaching job.

The pressure comes from the 24-7 loss at Wisconsin. USC came out of a bye week ranked No. 16, ran for minus-17 yards and scored seven points, the fewest ever by a team Riley has coached. The Trojans fell out of the AP Top 25 and dropped to 6-2 overall and 3-2 in the Big Ten. OutKick blamed several second-half decisions on Riley, including not calling a timeout before a Wisconsin touchdown with the defense misaligned and trying a 59-yard field goal on fourth-and-17. The outlet also faulted quarterback play and an offensive line it expected to be a strength.

This is Riley's fifth season since he left Oklahoma in late 2021. On3 noted that USC sits outside the College Football Playoff picture with four regular-season games left. Riley also tied his own future to the next game, telling reporters he was looking forward to Ohio State and that his focus belonged on the Coliseum, according to USA TODAY.

What it means for Ohio State

Riley's comments end the talk about whether he wants the job, but only results will answer whether he keeps it. USC's season has gone up and down. The Trojans opened 4-0 by beating San José State, Fresno State, Louisiana and Rutgers. They then lost 41-27 at home to No. 20 Oregon, edged Washington 25-21 and won 31-23 at Penn State before the Wisconsin loss. ClutchPoints listed No. 4 Indiana and No. 7 UCLA as still to come after Saturday's NBC game against No. 2 Ohio State, so a second straight loss would leave very little room in the playoff race.

The board for Ohio State at USC has the Buckeyes favored by 6.5 points across 12 venues. Novig lists Ohio State -6.5 at -111, and the best price anywhere on that side is -110 at theScore Bet, so the venues are nearly identical on the favorite. Taking the points with USC is less uniform. Novig has the Trojans +6.5 at +108, and BetRivers is the only listed venue offering +7, at -114. On the moneyline, Novig has Ohio State at -223 and USC at +213. Sportsbook hold runs from 3.5% to 5.9% on that market.

The total sits at 51.5 on Novig, with the over at -106 and the under at -100. Elsewhere the number ranges from 50.5 at BetRivers to 52.5 at FanDuel, a full point either way. Given that USC managed seven points last week, that spread is worth watching as the week goes on.

More on the Trojans' season is on the USC team page.