USC HC Lincoln Riley: Negative Trojans Crowd Notion A ‘False Narrative’

The USC Trojans opened the 2026 college football season in the win column, but that’s not the story for the No. 14 ranked team in the country. Instead, the story for USC is its poor attendance at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum for its Week 0 win over the San Jose State Spartans, with the standout number of empty seats on a sunny day garnering nationwide attention. “This is USC, right? People are going to pay attention. People are going to have an opinion. It’s part of being a blue-blood school. I don’t buy into the false narrative,” USC head coach Lincoln Riley said in a press conference on Tuesday afternoon about concerns regarding the school’s attendance for home games. “I think that comes from a lot of people who don’t follow our program and most of those who have never stepped foot in the Coliseum. “The reality is during my years here, attendance has gone up every single year, as has our play in the Coliseum, including running the table last year in front of a lot of epic atmospheres, and I expect that to happen again this year.” The esteemed LA Memorial Coliseum currently seats 77,500 people for USC football games, with a reported 51,144 people purchasing a ticket for last week’s game, the lowest number for the Trojans since 2018, excluding 2020 (fans weren’t allowed in the stands for Pac-12 games in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic). Last year (2025), USC averaged 67,783 people in attendance per game, which ranked ninth in the Big Ten, according to D1.ticker. “We understand the factors that impacted Saturday’s attendance,” USC said in a statement to USA TODAY Sports in response to the backlash about their attendance. “We have high expectations and a premier home schedule this season, and we know the competitive advantage an electric Coliseum atmosphere can provide our program. We thank our fans who showed up Saturday and look forward to seeing increased attendance the rest of the season.” Riley is in his fifth season at USC, with the Trojans a combined 36-18 under him from 2022-26. Last season, they went 9-4 overall and 7-2 in Big Ten play. The Trojans haven’t made the College Football Playoff with Riley, who came to USC after five seasons as the head coach of the Oklahoma Sooners (2017-21) and seven seasons on Oklahoma’s coaching staff altogether. As for how the actual Week 0 game went, USC beat San Jose State 42-26 in a victory that saw the Trojans get out to a 28-0 halftime edge and lead by as many as 32 points (USC led 35-3 at the outset of the fourth quarter). USC’s offense racked up 504 total yards. Quarterback Jayden Maiava threw for 286 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions, while posting a 191.8 passer rating, completing 86.2% of his passes (25 of 29) and rushing for a score. In all, the Trojans rushed for 166 yards and four touchdowns on 4.3 yards per carry. Meanwhile, USC wide receiver Trent Mosley had a game-high seven receptions for 118 yards and one touchdown. Riley’s Trojans host the Fresno State Bulldogs on Friday night (9 p.m. ET on FOX/FOX One), with USC’s Big Ten opener coming on the road against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights on Sept. 19.