LOS ANGELES — The coronation came nearly a year ago, and the next member of Lincoln Riley’s king-making quarterback lineage was slaying Louisville in the San Diego night. USC’s Miller Moss arrived, then, in a glorious stepping stone for his program’s future, a six-touchdown performance in the Holiday Bowl that seemingly set him on a direct path to Trojan glory.
It was as perfect a moment as any, across the last three years of Riley’s tenure at USC. The program’s future at quarterback seemed uncertain, after the graduation of Caleb Williams; here, suddenly, was a local kid who’d waited three years for his turn at the helm, who’d remained a Trojan for reasons much larger than football.
But college football, in this modern era, lacks sentimentality. It is cruel, in irony. And nearly a year later, the quarterback who’s bled cardinal-and-gold is suddenly a Louisville Cardinal.
On Saturday afternoon, after a quick stint in the portal, former USC quarterback Moss confirmed his commitment to Louisville on social media — the same program he’d torched in his first-ever start in 2023.
“Let’s do it #TheVille,” Moss wrote, on Instagram.
The writing seemed etched on the wall since Moss was spotted with his mother courtside at a Louisville basketball game this weekend. He’ll step immediately into a likely starting job in a prominent ACC program, one of the top transfer-portal quarterbacks available, and set to replace graduating senior Tyler Shough.
Moss established himself as a quality FBS starter through nine games in 2024, throwing for 2,555 yards and 18 touchdowns in nine games. As USC slumped to a 4-5 record in his first year as the Trojans’ starter, though, heat rose on Moss’s hold on the starting job, Riley’s offense looking as grounded as it ever had since his rise to head-coaching prominence.
Eventually, after being burdened with 50 pass attempts and throwing three picks in a loss to Washington, Riley turned to backup UNLV transfer Jayden Maiava to supplant Moss over a subsequent bye week.
“It was tough,” Riley said, then, asked the difficulty of replacing a leader who held such locker-room sway. “I’ve been a part of a few of these … there’s nothing easy about it, especially when you’ve got a guy that’s worked hard and done a lot of really good things.”
There was little chance of Moss returning in 2025 after the move was made. And he entered the portal as soon as it opened Monday, his time leading USC’s program packed with highs and lows alike, now come full circle to the December moment he put himself on the map.
