Caleb Williams having Kliff Kingsbury at USC is a 'great situation,' Bruce Feldman says

Caleb Willliams has some extra input with Kliff Kingsbury as an analyst on the USC football staff this year. It’s Lincoln Riley’s offense, but Kingsbury implemented similar concepts at Texas Tech and with the Arizona Cardinals, coaching Kyler Murray, a former Heisman winner under Riley.

It’s not a large role for Kingsbury as he gets back into coaching. But Fox Sports’ Bruce Feldman thinks Kingsbury will have a very positive effect on the Heisman winner quarterback.

Kingsbury is just a senior offensive analyst, but he’ll have some input in Riley’s ear regarding Williams. 

“I think it’s good to have Kliff in there,” Feldman said on The Herd. “I talked to Caleb a few weeks ago. And to have Kliff’s perspective, Kliff is so sharp and (he’s) tweaking little things and seeing what another team is going to do. I think it’s another voice for Lincoln to kind of utilize in game planning for Caleb, to bounce stuff off of I think it’s a great situation.”

It doesn’t hurt that Williams is arguably the No. 1 overall pick next season. He won a Heisman last year and is regarded as the top college quarterback at the moment.

Basically, if Williams plays at the level to win a second straight Heisman Trophy, USC is probably in the College Football Playoff. 

“I definitely think they have the talent to be a playoff team,” Feldman said. “And it wouldn’t shock me, you know, we’ve only seen one guy win a Heisman twice. I think Caleb, in this system, is that special.”

As Riley explained during Always College Football, Kingsbury adds a ton to USC in 2023.

“It does a lot, first I’d point to just for the entire team,” Riley said. “I mean, a guy that’s been a head coach at both of the collegiate and the professional levels. He’s had to make those decisions and sit in that chair, so he’s been really, extremely helpful for me and I think other members of our staff with his experience level.”

Known for his explosive offenses, Kingsbury took over as the head coach of his alma mater, Texas Tech, in 2013 and coached there through 2018, compiling a 36-38 record. He was fired but landed the Arizona Cardinals job, which he held from 2019 to 2022, earning a 28-37-1 record.

“It certainly adds a lot to the offensive room,” Riley continued. “We’ve got a lot of really good coaches and I think really good minds in that room and he’s certainly added to it, and just to have that resource for game planning, for how we design practice, for on down to what we do on an individual level that day with the quarterbacks.

“It’s great to have somebody of his experience and he’s certainly made us better and I look forward to going through this year with him.”