-
Paolo Uggetti, ESPN
USC coach Lincoln Riley missed a second straight day of practice Tuesday because of an undisclosed illness, according to a school spokesperson.
In Riley’s absence, USC wide receivers coach Dennis Simmons is set to lead the team. Simmons, who is listed as USC’s assistant head coach on its website, has coached alongside Riley since 2015, when both began stints at Oklahoma. They both left the Sooners in 2021 to coach at USC.
“[Riley’s] getting better,” Simmons said after USC’s Tuesday practice, noting he had talked to Riley earlier in the day. “We’re viewing this really as a player getting dinged up during the game or during practice, so the next guy is stepping up. We’re holding it down until he’s able to resume his duties.”
Riley, 40, is resting at home under doctor’s orders. He also missed his weekly appearance on the in-house YouTube show “Trojans Live” on Monday.
Simmons said Riley would return as soon as he could, but he did not specify when that would be. It remains to be seen whether Simmons will be calling plays should Riley be unable to travel.
“The guys have handled things in a pretty professional way,” Simmons said of the team. “It’s not like he’s gone forever.”
USC’s compliance office is reportedly working to make senior offensive analyst Kliff Kingsbury an on-field assistant during Riley’s absence. Kingsbury joined Riley’s staff as an analyst this offseason after he was fired from his previous position as the head coach of the Arizona Cardinals.
USC, which was ranked sixth in the AP preseason poll and had College Football Playoff aspirations, is coming off back-to-back losses to Notre Dame and Utah in the past two weeks. The Trojans head to Cal this upcoming weekend before hosting undefeated Washington at home the following week.
