Summer means watch list season in college football. This week, however, it was not a Trojans player that made a watch list, but rather the head coach. On Monday, USC head coach Lincoln Riley was named to the preseason watch list for the Dodd Trophy.
“Managed by Peach Bowl, Inc., The Dodd Trophy, college football’s most coveted national coaching award, celebrates the head coach of a team who enjoys success on the gridiron, while also stressing the importance of scholarship, leadership and integrity – the three pillars of legendary coach Bobby Dodd’s coaching philosophy,” USC wrote in a press release. “The award was established to honor the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division 1A) head football coach whose program represents the highest ideals on and off the field.
“The watch list was created through a selection process by the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation and Peach Bowl, Inc. taking into consideration each program’s Academic Progress Rate (APR), Graduation Success Rate (GSR), commitment to service and charity in the community, as well as projected success for the 2026 season.”
Riley is entering his fifth season as the head coach at USC. Last year, he led the Trojans to a 9-4 record and a trip to the Alamo Bowl, where they fell to TCU. With a large number of returning starters and the top recruiting class in the country coming in, there is hope around USC that this is the year Riley finally breaks through and leads the program to its first College Football Playoff.
Contact/Follow @TrojansWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of USC Trojans news, notes and opinion.
This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: USC head coach Lincoln Riley named to Dodd Trophy preseason watch list
Reporting by Adam Bradford, Trojans Wire / Trojans Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Adam Bradford, Trojans Wire | USA TODAY Network
