College GameDay is back in Eugene for the second time this season. Oregon gets to feature on the show twice this year, while USC makes its 2025 debut. But for some reason, the Trojans just can’t win the crew’s favor. Pat McAfee just dealt them yet another tough reality, playing mind games with fans.

“Now you look at Lincoln Riley and this USC team,” McAfee teased the home fans. “Lincoln Riley, when he’s able to dial up their defense, not a–. Oregon’s got two hurt wide receivers. What are they going to do with it? Dante Moore can’t even throw the ball to a human cause they don’t even have a human. They’re going to be playing with nine guys.”

The rest of the College GameDay panel had made its picks for the Oregon-USC clash, predicting Dan Lanning side to win. At first, the crowd in Eugene thought Pat McAfee would choose USC. With that badmouthing of the depleted Oregon WR room, it sure looked like it. But then, McAfee pulled some classic McAfee theatrics. Despite praising Riley’s USC, the former punter predicted a win for the Ducks.

“With that being said, Southern California is where all the lights are. Lincoln Riley is a beast. Dan Lanning and the boys are built for it. Eugene, you been so good to me. We were just here two weeks. You all showed up. It’s so sweet. Give me the Oregon Ducks to get a huge win today. Marcus (Mariota), your Ducks get a huge win. They pound the USC Trojans, and we have a spectacular day of college football. Thank you for the hospitality.”

This marks yet another instance of USC being ignored for the dominant side, despite having some key firepower with itself. In 2025, GameDay hosts have regularly picked USC opponents instead of the Trojans, Ethan Inman reported for Trojans Wire. Lincoln Riley and Co. got only 2 bids out of 6 for the Michigan game. They also got only 2 votes for the Nebraska win as well.

This game is actually the first time since 2016 that USC found a spot on the GameDay’s calendar. It was probably at the behest of the show consistently favoring Oregon. This is actually the third time the Ducks get to be on College GameDay, while Eugene got to play host twice. Dan Lanning‘s second year in the Big 10 has dropped a little, compared to his flawless record last year. Why USC deserves some more attention this year is because they are at a position to make it big this year.

Pat McAfee knows that USC can cause some trouble. With one of the most prolific passing attacks and RB King Miller, this offense can cause chaos. Defensively, the Ducks have to watch out for that Trojan secondary. USC does have wins over 2 ranked teams, and will give a tough fight to Oregon. While College GameDay has yet again ignored Riley, he could care less about the spotlight.

Lincoln Riley unfazed by hype over College GameDay feature

College Gameday picked USC to lose, but Lincoln Riley does not care about them at all. It’s a likely reaction after having been repeatedly ignored. After all, the show has no hopes for USC causing an upset. According to Riley, the Trojans might as well as continue their job without the show’s attention. He has some due reason to be a little disappointed with this trend.

“I mean, I think for us, these are all the same people who thought we were going to suck. Seriously, I mean, this is all the same people, what we were going to do this and USC was this and that. So, for us to pay attention to them now would be a little bit counterproductive. So, we haven’t forgotten that,” Riley said on the November 17 episode of USC Athletics TrojansLive.

Ever since Pete Carroll stepped away from USC, College GameDay too has dropped the Coliseum from its map. The last time the show came to the campus was in 2013. And with USC football slipping in standards, GameDay found it easy to ignore the program. But this year, things are clearly different for the Trojans. Lincoln Riley has stopped the downward slide of the team under his leadership, and has also saved himself from the hot set.

USC even entered the Oregon game as a ranked team. But College GameDay refuses to see the Trojans in that light. If USC does pull off an upset today, maybe next year, LA will be a stop for the show’s 2026 calendar.