Paul Finebaum Identifies Deion Sanders as 'Perfect Replacement' for Powerhouse Program

Lincoln Riley is heading into his third season as head coach of the USC Trojans. And according to ESPN college football analyst Paul Finebaum, it should be his last.

Finebaum has been openly critical of Riley's coaching performance in Los Angeles. In fact, he went as far as to say Riley's 2023 season was "one of the worst coaching jobs" he's ever seen.

Finebaum thinks Riley should be fired by the end of the Trojans' 2024 campaign — and he already has a "perfect replacement" in mind.

Finebaum said Colorado head coach Deion Sanders should take over the USC job.

"The answer after this season is Deion Sanders," Finebaum said on ESPN's First Take. "He's going to be tired of Colorado, because quite frankly, it's not 'prime time.'

"But you put [Coach] Prime in Tinseltown and I think you have one of the great combinations in history... Deion Sanders as the coach of Southern Cal is the answer to the problems... Deion Sanders exudes exactly what that community is about."

Riley and the Trojans started the 2023 college football season with a 6-0 record before losing five of their last seven games. Now, the former Oklahoma head coach is heading into his first season in LA without superstar quarterback Caleb Williams under center.

Sanders and the Buffaloes are looking to improve on the 4-8 record they put together in Year 1.