While all the attention was on the shakeup and turnover within USC's defensive coaching staff this offseason, head coach Lincoln Riley made an under-the-radar change on the offensive side, moving Luke Huard from inside receivers coach to quarterbacks coach.
While Riley has always had extra help with the QBs in the form of "senior offensive analysts" Will Harriger in 2022 and Kliff Kingsbury last season, analysts are supposed to be limited in what on-field coaching they can do, so moving one of his 10 full-fledged assistants to focus on the QBs is a notable change this year.
Riley spoke at length about that decision Tuesday and how it allows him to be more involved in other facets of the team now.
"It was something that we explored. We actually talked about it a little bit last year and ended up not pulling the trigger on it, just didn't feel like exactly the right time. But had another conversation after the offseason, and we felt like Luke's experience both playing and coaching the position previously, he now has had multiple years in our system and his familiarity with what we want to do is at a point where it made sense," Riley said.
"It obviously gives me a chance to bounce around and do a lot of things. I'll still be very, very involved with the quarterbacks -- I'm certainly not leaving it by any stretch. But there are times when I want to be in the O-line meeting. There's times when I want to be in defensive meetings. I haven't missed a defensive install this spring. And so, to be able to bounce around but still be present there was ideal, and Luke's got the great skill set for it. So far, the guys have taken to it very well."
Huard has been with USC since Riley arrived, first joining as an analyst before stepping into the role of inside wide receivers coach when Dave Nichol tragically died from cancer in March 2022.
Huard comes from a QB family as his brothers Damon and Brock both played in the NFL. Luke Huard played three years at North Carolina (making four starts) before a shoulder injury ended his playing career. He had been a star prospect and the Gatorade Player of the Year in the state of Washington as a high school senior.
He transitioned into coaching at the high school level in his home state, spent two years as graduate assistant with the Washington Huskies and has since been the offensive coordinator/QBs coach at Illinois State, Georgia State and the co-OC/QBs coach at Sacramento State. Immediately prior to joining the Trojans, Huard spent three seasons as an offensive analyst at Texas A&M.
"I knew it was going to be a great thing and Luke is more than capable -- lucky to have someone like him that has a skill set to be able to do it," Riley said, while acknowledging it's still been a transition for him to step back a bit from the role. "But yeah, listen, when you've done something for 20 straight years it's a little strange, but I've enjoyed it -- I have. I feel like it's allowed me to be more present in other areas of the program but still not leaving anything in terms of still having a role offensively."
Said wide receivers coach Dennis Simmons: "[Riley is] obviously going to still be heavily involved in the offense, but Linc is one of those guys, if he gives you the keys to something then he's saying that he trusts you. And all of the guys on our staff are talented enough coaches that they're able to step in and fulfill those roles. One of the great things about working here and working with him is that he's one of those guys you never want to let down. Luke is doing everything he can to be the best quarterback coach in the country."
Quarterback Miller Moss shared his perspective on working closer with Huard so far this offseason and spring.
“I love Coach Huard. I mean, obviously he comes from a very quarterback-centric family, so he speaks our language, so to speak. But great to have a guy that’s been in the system that knows our stuff, and also he’s coached wide receivers so we get the intel on what the receivers are being told. So definitely super unique," Moss said. "And he’s been great. He had us over for a barbecue and stuff like that. He’s a cool dude. His pickleball skills need a little improvement, but he’s been great, I really enjoy working with him so far.”
The timing of the move aligns with Riley's stated commitment to prioritizing USC's defensive turnaround after a rough two years on that side of the ball led to turnover over four of the five defensive staff positions, led by the hiring of coordinator D'Anton Lynn.
During USC's first spring practice Tuesday, Riley spent most of the early periods (the only ones open to media viewing) observing each of the defensive units working through drills.
In terms of his role when he's in defensive meetings, Riley said it's growing the more time he spends with those units.
"I would say in the beginning probably a little bit more observation. Obviously, I certainly have a very good idea of what we're doing schematically, but when you talk about the finer details of this, I mean, I'm learning it -- I'm further ahead than the players on it, but I'm learning it for the first time kind of like they are in a way. So to be able to be there, to be engaged, to be able to have those conversations with our players, it helps me in my conversations with our defensive staff about what we're doing or about strategy," Riley said.
"It's just been a great thing, it's been awesome to be able to be in there and feel like you're not missing out or costing the other side of the ball or another position group anything by actually being there. You don't kind of have that guilty conscience a little bit, so, so far, so good."
Riley added that he always thought it would be a move he'd make at some point in his career, but especially in his first two years at USC -- with a generational talent at QB in Caleb Williams -- he thought his best service to the program was to be as locked in on maximizing Williams' development and the offense's potential.
Again, Riley remains actively involved in developing redshirt junior QB Miller Moss, transfer addition Jayden Maiava and veteran reserve Jake Jensen, but he also knows his presence is valuable elsewhere at times too.
"I knew at some point I would probably want to have a quarterback coach. I didn't feel like it was the right thing in the beginning because I felt like the best thing in the beginning to help us win was to make sure that that piece was right. I think that probably showed a lot in that first year, but I knew eventually, and especially as some of these roles have changed and more has gotten thrown on our plate, I knew eventually I want to just have more flexibility," Riley said. "I never want to leave it, I don't know that I ever will completely leave it, but at the same time, to be able to have that flexibility where when I want to go in another meeting or be present somewhere else I know somebody else can step right in and handle it. That's huge.
"And then the other piece of it is the recruiting piece. I can't go out all the time. Head coaches are restricted when we can go out on the road, and to have somebody that can be out there and evaluating guys, recruiting guys constantly was really important to me. And like I said, it fit because we had the perfect guy on staff to step in there and make that happen."
