LOS ANGELES -- The coronation came nearly a year ago, and the next member of Lincoln Riley's king-making quarterback lineage was slaying Louisville in the San Diego night. USC's Miller Moss arrived, then, in a glorious stepping stone for his program's future, a six-touchdown performance in the Holiday Bowl that seemingly set him on a direct path to Trojan glory.
It was as perfect a moment as any across the last three years of Riley's tenure at USC. The program's future at quarterback seemed uncertain, after the graduation of Caleb Williams; here, suddenly, was a local kid who'd waited three years for his turn at the helm, who'd remained a Trojan for reasons much larger than football.
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