ESPN analyst Paul Finebaum believes USC coach Lincoln Riley’s program is on “life support” after Saturday’s 24-7 loss at Wisconsin, with an Ohio State team missing its starting quarterback arriving at the Coliseum on Halloween night.

Speaking with ESPN’s Matt Barrie, Finebaum called the Oct. 31 game against the Buckeyes “the biggest game of Lincoln Riley’s career” and added, “A loss to Ohio State and a backup quarterback will finish him.”

USC’s loss at Wisconsin

The Trojans (6-2, 3-2 Big Ten) managed 7 points in Madison, the fewest ever by a Riley-coached team. They also finished with minus-17 rushing yards on 25 carries against Wisconsin coach Luke Fickell’s defense.

USC moved the ball more consistently than the final score suggests, posting a 51% success rate to Wisconsin’s 43%. But the Trojans had a 29% success rate in the red zone and threw two interceptions, while the Badgers didn’t turn the ball over.

“We flat out didn’t play good enough on any of the three sides of the ball,” Riley said.

Finebaum called Riley “a complete fraud as a coach” after Oregon’s 41-27 win at the Coliseum on Sept. 26, and he opened by revisiting his conversation with Barrie from that weekend.

“Matt, we had a conversation about Lincoln Riley a few weeks ago when they lost to Oregon, but I will table it till next week because anything we say today could either be exaggerated or undone by next Saturday night,” Finebaum said. “They’re playing Ohio State.”

The former Oklahoma coach’s buyout is estimated at around $70 million, and Finebaum addressed that figure directly.

“I know what the buyout is. I’ve been reminded by every obnoxious Trojan fan every time we have a conversation about Lincoln Riley, but there’s no getting around it,” Finebaum said. “They’re on life support.”

Who starts for Ohio State?

Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin hurt his right throwing shoulder when Indiana’s Mario Landino sacked him in the fourth quarter of the Buckeyes’ 19-15 win at Indiana on Oct. 17. Ohio State coach Ryan Day has since ruled him out indefinitely.

“We are putting together a plan for him not being available for the regular season and then also him not being available for the postseason,” Day said.

The injury also knocked Sayin from the top spot in the latest Big Ten quarterback rankings, where Indiana’s Josh Hoover took over at No. 1.

Luke Fahey, a true freshman from Mission Viejo, California, replaced Sayin against the Hoosiers and is the frontrunner to start in Los Angeles. Still, former five-star recruit Tavien St. Clair shared first-team reps with Fahey during the bye week, and Day said he’d make the final decision this week with input from offensive coordinator Arthur Smith.

“We don’t know what the Buckeyes are going to look like without Julian Sayin,” Finebaum said.

USC’s remaining Big Ten schedule

Ohio State at USC kicks off at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBC. The Trojans then get a bye before visiting defending national champion Indiana on Nov. 14, hosting Maryland, which fired Mike Locksley last week, and closing at UCLA on Nov. 28.

“They still have UCLA at the end of the season, but this is the game that’s going to determine the future,” Finebaum said. “And if you can’t win this game, the season collapses. This was a season that Trojan fans really thought they were going to the playoffs.”

Finebaum also questioned the turnout for a primetime game at the Coliseum, where USC drew 51,144 for its Week 0 opener against San Jose State.

“Not only how USC plays, but who is going to show up on a Saturday night to watch this USC team that has been woefully disappointing,” Finebaum said.

Riley is 41-20 in five seasons at USC, and the Trojans haven’t won more than nine games in a season since he went 11-3 in his 2022 debut.