USC spent nearly $19.7 million on Lincoln Riley during first year as Trojans head coach

USC reportedly paid Lincoln Riley $19.7 million during his first year as the Trojans head coach in 2022, according to USA Today’s Steve Berkowitz.

According to his report, USC provided USA Today with a document showing that in addition to his $10 million base salary, the university also credited Riley with $9.6 million in “other reportable compensation.”

USC sent a statement to Berkowitz on Wednesday night that the money is tied into Riley’s buyout with Oklahoma. The Trojans paid Riley’s $4.5 million buyout, “treating that amount as taxable income to Riley and then also paying the taxes that were due on that amount,” Berkowitz wrote in the report.

So in reality, Riley only saw his $10 million base salary with the rest of the cash being used to tie up his loose ends from his time with the Sooners.

The obtained document also showed that USC paid former defensive coordinator Alex Grinch his $2 million base salary on top of another $2.3 million under the same label of “other reportable compensation.” USC also said that this was buyout and tax-related. Grinch’s buyout from OU totaled $1.03 million, although he was fired from USC with two games remaining in the 2023 regular season.

It continues, listing former head coach Clay Helton as having received nearly $4 million in severance pay in 2022. In 2023, that number was reduced roughly $900,000.

In total, Berkowitz found that USC paid $28 million regarding the employment of just three coaches in Riley, Grinch and Helton. Riley is the only one of the three that still remains with the program.

These types of numbers are not unheard of, as Miami did something similar for the hiring of Mario Cristobal away from Oregon. Cristobal’s base pay was $7.7 million, but was paid out a total more than $22 million in, “other reportable incoming.”

Miami athletic director Dan Radakovich confirmed to USA Today that the other $14.9 million that was paid out to Cristobal was to cover his buyout at Oregon and the subsequent tax gross-up pay that coincided with it.

Moving onto the basketball realm, former Trojans hoops head coach Andy Enfield was also credited with more money than what is listen on his base salary. According to the document, Enfield was paid $4.2 million which is up from his $3.55 million base pay reported the previous year. Enfield is no longer with USC, either and has since been replaced with former Arkansas head coach Eric Musselman.