It’s Not Clear-Cut Choice for Riley or the Trojans

If everybody is real quiet, and you tilt your ear just right, you can probably hear it, “Help, I’m losing . . . help, I’m losing . . . help, I’m losing.”

How bad is it? On a neutral field, USC is probably the seven-point choice to defeat the Chargers, now 1-13, so you have to figure if the Trojans throw a life preserver at San Diego Coach Mike Riley today in the form of a five-year contract to replace Paul Hackett, he’ll grab it.

Let’s see, Carson Palmer or Ryan Leaf? Kareem Kelly or one of the Chargers’ what’s-his-names who play wide receiver? Five years in Heritage Hall or a pink slip on Christmas morning a day after the Charger season has ended.

That’s what you would think, but Riley, a coach with a career 9-21 mark with San Diego, has given thought to rejecting an offer from the Trojans if it is forthcoming and riding it out with the Chargers. Leaf over Palmer. Whatever-his-name-is over Kelly. Life without Mike Garrett staring over his shoulder, and by way of comparison, maybe losing isn’t so bad.

It’s all so confusing: Riley ready to accept a USC job offer earlier last week; Riley citing family issues and opting to stay with the Chargers; Riley convinced he can win at USC; Riley determined to turn around the Chargers.

And USC has never offered him the job.

Riley loved his previous experience at USC, and later at Oregon State, setting him up well for a return to the Pacific 10 Conference, and he was ready to go.

But things have changed in the past few days. Riley had looked like a man in need of a new job at a time when USC appeared eager to talk with him after Garrett, the athletic director, had failed to secure contract signatures from Dennis Erickson or Mike Bellotti. Riley and Garrett met. They have not talked since.

Had USC offered Riley the job at that time, the Trojan search might be over. But USC hesitated.

That gave Riley time to think. He talked to his wife, Dee, who told him: “You don’t know what it’s like when you’re not around here,” and he reflected on how comfortable his family has been in San Diego, walking on the beach in the morning, driving his 13-year-old daughter to school, watching his 16-year-old son’s basketball games. He took stock of priorities.

He talked to his wife again, and she said they can make whatever his career decision is work at home, and so now his head is spinning. If USC calls, there will have to be another fireside family chat.

He is also coming off an encouraging meeting with Charger President Dean Spanos, which again has him considering all his options.

Will he stay, or will he go--if offered the position?

“I honestly don’t know what I’m going to do,” he said.

Maybe the most significant thing that has happened in the past few days has been Spanos’ positive approach to Riley, which has prompted Riley to start talking about the things he could do to improve the Chargers.

“Mike Riley has told me he wants to be here,” Spanos said. “And we want him here.”

Beyond this year?

“Absolutely,” said Spanos, and now there are life preservers everywhere.

Spanos has made it clear repeatedly that he likes Riley, and while he’s talking like a club president who would like to keep the coach, there are indications within the organization that Spanos wouldn’t hold Riley to the three years remaining on his contract if Riley wished to leave--pushing the door ajar for USC.

But would Riley take the job if it’s offered by USC?

“I’ve never heard anything from him other than he wants to be here, so there’s no reason to address that,” Spanos said in declining to say if he would allow Riley to leave. “I don’t answer ‘what if’ questions.

“I understand what USC may want to hear, but I’m not concerned about ‘SC--that’s their problem.”

For the past week USC Associate Athletic Director Daryl Gross, who has been Garrett’s point man in this amateurish coaching search, has been talking to Riley on the telephone and intimating that the Charger coach is on top of USC’s list. Gross and Riley spoke Friday, and Gross suddenly indicated the school had more interviews to conduct, agreeing with Riley that they would not talk again until today.

Now the names of Sonny Lubick and Pete Carroll are being thrown around as if they should mean something. Does USC want Riley--does USC know what it’s doing?

“There’s no question Mike Riley fits the bill for USC--Norv Turner too,” said Baltimore Raven defensive coordinator Marvin Lewis, who is one of the hottest head-coaching prospects in the NFL. “But why Pete Carroll? He failed with the New York Jets, failed in New England and does not have recruiting experience.”

Why not Marvin Lewis, 42, maybe the best defensive coordinator in football for the past five years, who is overseeing a unit that will probably finish the season giving up fewer points than any team in NFL history, including the 1986 Chicago Bears.

“Since there are not many African Americans working as head coaches in college football, my agent and I thought we should go after a job rather than sitting back and waiting to see what happens,” Lewis said. “He sent a letter to USC on my behalf expressing an interest in the job. I’ve never heard back from anyone at USC.”

Advised that USC President Steven Sample does not return phone calls, Lewis expressed relief, with a laugh, that he wasn’t the only one being rejected.

“There’s not much I can do,” Lewis said. “I’m trying to get this team to the Super Bowl, so I’m not out there lobbying for a job, and my only contact at USC was Hackett--that’s probably not going to help me get a job there.

“Maybe somebody is telling Mike Garrett what to do--if not--he ought to open his eyes. This hire for him is critical to his future, and seeing what’s out there and where they are going, I don’t understand what he’s doing.”

Who does?

If Riley is the choice, he has the endorsement of Baltimore Coach Brian Billick. “I have a lot of respect for the Chargers--that’s a team that’s in a tough spot and it fought to the end. They are a team with a lot of fire and I want to compliment Mike Riley.

“There is no harder thing in professional sports than holding together a team under the circumstances that they’re dealing with right now.”

Riley’s team, while inept--and doesn’t that bring back memories of USC--has played hard through a record-breaking year--the most losses in a season by a Charger team. A league-leading 46 turnovers have destroyed the Chargers--and doesn’t that bring back memories of USC.

Can anyone here play the game? No.

Sunday, the Chargers did not have Leaf throw a pass until the final play of the first quarter. And while that might please a run-happy Garrett, it’s hard to compete when your overriding strategy is to prevent your own players from hurting you.

The Chargers scored three points--maybe the single biggest feat in the NFL this season--against a defense that had shut out four opponents. They had nine first downs--for the game. They ran 51 plays and averaged 2.5 yards.

So you would think if USC calls Riley now and offers him a job, the decision would be an easy one to abandon ship in San Diego and start anew in Los Angeles.

That’s what you would think, but USC’s indecisiveness and bizarre way of conducting business has muddied the waters, making nothing clear at this time.

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T.J. Simers can be reached at his e-mail address:t.j.simers@latimes.com