Deion Sanders' Colorado football program somewhat broke Lincoln Riley at USC. By flipping Julian Lewis, the Buffs started a minor recruiting exodus that also included Carde Smith following the Carrolton QB to Boulder.
Riley and Co. were able to get a recruit back, flipping 3-star DB Alex Graham from CU, but the damage is done. FanSided's Quinn Everts offered the most hilarious of silver linings for the Trojans after the flip: at least Coach Prime doesn't completely own USC.
"Lincoln Riley and the Trojans have watched multiple high-caliber prospects flip from USC — including quarterback Julian Lewis, who is headed to Colorado — so to get some wins on National Signing Day will cause a sigh of relief to Trojans fans everywhere," Everts wrote.
"Although it doesn't have quite the same impact as a 5-star quarterback flipping like Julian Lewis, at least Lincoln Riley can say Deion Sanders didn't completely own him this recruiting cycle, as 3-star defensive back Alex Graham is headed to Southern California instead of Boulder next season."
Things are going from bad to worse in Los Angeles with Riley running the show. Not being completely owned by Sanders and the Buffs wasn't the goal when the Trojans entered their agreement with the Big Ten.
If the bar isn't raised back to a respectable level in 2025, USC won't continue to let the highly compensated Riley sink the program further. With Riley garnering interest from UCF this offseason, it's clear other programs see one of his feet already out the door in L.A.