Search for a Coach Continues for Trojans

In case anyone was beginning to nod off, the third week of USC’s coaching search began with a new round of comments, quotes and guesses.

One source insisted Monday that San Diego Charger Coach Mike Riley remained atop the Trojans’ wish list. Another said he had given way to former NFL coach Pete Carroll and a new name, University of Pittsburgh Coach Walt Harris.

Colorado State Coach Sonny Lubick was still in the mix too.

If that wasn’t enough to stir the pot, Charger President Dean Spanos talked tough when it was suggested that the team might let Riley skip out on the final three years of his five-year contract.

“I’m holding him to it, yeah, absolutely,” Spanos said. “He has a contract here. He has already said that he wants to be here.”

Was Spanos putting an end to Riley’s candidacy?

Or was he posturing, letting Charger fans know that no college team was going to take his coach before season’s end?

Riley, for one, did not read anything final into the situation.

“I don’t really have a clear-cut picture of how it’s going to end,” he said. “I’ve made the statement that I want to coach football next year. I wish I could end the speculation, but that speculation is not in my hands.”

That speculation will now probably build around the supposed alternates, the names that have floated on the fringe for the last week or so.

If you asked various sources, they said Lubick interviewed with USC Athletic Director Mike Garrett on Monday.

If you asked Lubick, he said he had a hard day of recruiting in Fresno, then enjoyed a restful meal.

Harris was a new entry, though the talented coach recently withdrew from consideration at Alabama and pledged his loyalty to Pitt.

No clarification was forthcoming from USC officials, who could not be reached for comment.

Meanwhile, back in San Diego, Spanos was saying many of the same things he said in Baltimore on Sunday, that he would hold Riley to his obligations and would like to have him back next season.

At the same time, with the Chargers at 1-13, he left the door open to firing his coach.

“That’s always a possibility,” he said. “That surely is not the way we are looking at it. I would be extremely disappointed if that happened.”

The executive and his coach still plan to sit down after the season to discuss Riley’s future. That meeting might come the week after Christmas or the first week of the new year, they said.

“And you know what?” Riley said, mindful that the recruiting season is ticking away. “Obviously, USC can’t wait for that.”

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The Associated Press contributed to this story.