Lincoln Riley like 'proud father' ahead of Jalen Hurts vs. Baker Mayfield NFL playoff clash

Lincoln Riley should wear one of those half-and-half jerseys Monday night.

“That’s exactly what I need,” the Southern Cal coach told The Oklahoman on his way to work a few mornings ago.

A jersey with Baker Mayfield’s No. 6 on one side and Jalen Hurts’ No. 1 on the other.

Riley, who coached both quarterbacks at OU, is planning to be at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa Bay when Mayfield’s Buccaneers host Hurts’ Eagles at 7:15 p.m. Monday in an NFC wild card game. Riley has seen his former college quarterbacks duel in the NFL — like when Mayfield and Hurts played against each other earlier this season — but never, until Monday, have two of Riley’s quarterbacks met in the playoffs.

“You think how hard it is to become an NFL quarterback, you think how hard it is to help take your team to the playoffs, and to have two of our guys be a couple of the last ones standing, it’s special, it is,” Riley said. “It definitely takes you back to the different memories and the great moments together.”

Back to his four seasons with Mayfield and one with Hurts — a Heisman Trophy winner and a runner-up who combined to go 45-8 as OU’s starting quarterbacks.

Riley said he feels like a “proud father.”

“Just kind of sitting back and watching those guys live out their dreams and be NFL starting quarterbacks and compete for Super Bowls,” he said. “It’s just really, really cool to see them and what they’ve both accomplished.”

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Say what you will about Riley, but the man has the Midas touch with quarterbacks.

Mayfield was a former walk-on turned No. 1 NFL Draft pick. Hurts was a winner in his three years at Alabama, but he didn’t flash his promise as a passer until transferring to OU, where he threw for almost 4,000 yards and tossed 32 touchdowns against eight interceptions.

In between them was Kyler Murray, who had the best statistical season of any OU quarterback en route to winning the Heisman Trophy. And of course Caleb Williams, who joined Riley in leaving OU for USC, went on to win the Heisman in his first season with the Trojans.

That’s three Heisman-winning quarterbacks, and a runner-up in Hurts, who excelled in Riley’s offense. Assuming Williams, the projected No. 1 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, starts from Day 1 — and Mayfield keeps a starting job — an eighth of all NFL starting quarterbacks entering next season will have been coached by Riley.

Among them, Mayfield and Hurts have polar personalities. Mayfield is brash. Hurts is stoic. Mayfield out-swaggers opponents while Hurts pounds them with strength. Mayfield’s press conferences’ are entertaining. Hurts’ are downright Belichickian.

“They probably, in a lot of ways, couldn’t be more different, but there are some strong similarities between the two,” Riley said. “In a world of high-level competitors, they stand even above that. Their competitiveness to win, their inner competitiveness is so strong. The fire burns so hot for both of those two, you never have to worry about those guys in terms of motivation or work ethic.”

Same goes for their toughness. Both Hurts and Mayfield have battled injuries while leading their squads to the playoffs.

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“Really, really tough guys, tough players,” Riley said. “They both battled through a lot, both physically and mentally. Both of these guys have been told ‘no.’ Baker was told he’d probably never play in the NFL, the whole thing with walking on, and even after the deal in Cleveland, where he did a great job there, he’s had to bounce around a little bit. It’s been cool to see him settle in there and for everybody in Tampa Bay to see his impact.

“And obviously Jalen was told no at Alabama and even early in his time (at OU), people in the NFL thinking if he goes to the NFL he might have to consider a position (change). Now look at him.”

Riley said both Mayfield and Hurts had tunnel vision in chasing team success at OU. Their individual success was a byproduct of all of those wins.

But Riley, removed from the situation, has the value of perspective.

“Sometimes you look up and you’re in a pretty cool situation,” Riley said, “and that’s what happened with both those guys.”

Riley said he isn’t cheering for Mayfield over Hurts or vice versa. He’ll be cheering for points.

“I’ll just be rooting for the offenses,” Riley said. “I hope the final score is like 43-42 and it’s a great game and they both play out of their mind.”

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Lincoln Riley feels like 'proud father' before Mayfield vs. Hurts game