What a wild week it’s been for the USC Trojans.
Just last Saturday, it seemed like the Lincoln Riley era in Los Angeles was nearing its end. SC went into Madison as a sizable favorite over the Wisconsin Badgers and laid what can only be described as, charitably, an egg. For the first time in his coaching career, a Lincoln Riley team scored just seven points in a game.
There were head-scratching coaching mistakes, including attempting a 58-yard field goal against the wind. Predictably, it did not work, setting Wisconsin up with outstanding field position and a score. The Trojans looked poorly prepared and poorly coached, with senior quarterback Jayden Maiava taking multiple atrocious intentional grounding penalties and throwing two picks, a muffed catch on a Badgers kickoff leading to a missed opportunity before halftime, not calling timeout when the SC defense was misaligned on a pivotal fourth-and-2, leading to a Wisconsin touchdown, and an incredible -17 net rushing yards.
After the game, the speculation and discussion was immediate. Riley was mentally checked out in LA, was one common sentiment. USC’s athletic department had already started putting together funds to potentially clear Riley’s rumored $70 million buyout. And fans and analysts were putting together wish lists of potential new coaches for 2027 and beyond.
Then, Saturday happened. USC hosted the Ohio State Buckeyes, still heavily favored despite starting backup quarterback Luke Fahey. OSU has a top three defense, arguably the best player in the country in Jeremiah Smith, and a wealth of big game experience under head coach Ryan Day. And sure enough, the Trojans dominated.
Even in a college football season where parity has been more obvious than ever, it was a shocking upset. Ohio State dominated time of possession and racked up yardage thanks to some garbage time drives, but never really looked like they had much of a chance. When set up with a first-and-goal inside the 1-yard-line, the Buckeyes still couldn’t get in the end zone.
USC, which has been unimpressive for most of the season, looked like a totally different team. Star freshman Trent Mosley took a screen pass on the second play of the game for a long touchdown. Mark Bowman provided the highlight of the year from a tight end, hurdling an Ohio State defender and running through tackles on a huge catch and run. And the Trojans much-maligned defense grabbed an opportune turnover, forced a fumble that was inexplicably not reviewed, and got stop after stop when they needed it.
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Needless to say, a win over the number two team in the country was a season, and potentially program, altering turn of events. And Riley had a well, interesting, time after the conclusion, including a run-in with the Ohio State athletic director, and an unusual prepared statement that he read during postgame media availability.
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Buckeyes staff and players were walking off the Coliseum field in the tunnel, and Riley tried to walk to the same area with his family and security guard. But an OSU staffer held him up, and after a few seconds, athletic director Ross Bjork can be seen gesturing back toward Riley and saying something toward him. Whatever it was, Riley was not happy about it, clearly saying some very profane phrases back as he was finally let through.
Another angle more clearly showed Bjork saying something indistinguishable as he left the field.
Confrontations happen, particularly after a heated game between two proud programs. Things got even a bit more unusual though, in the news conference.
LINCOLN RILEY ADDRESSES SPECULATION ABOUT HIS FUTURE AT USC AHEAD OF HUGE GAME AGAINST OHIO STATE
Riley, who already addressed speculation about his commitment to USC in a midweek news conference, saying LA is where he wants to be, read a prepared statement about his job and the Trojans program. This time, clearly with a bit more, shall we say, fesity language toward the media.
“This program is built on internal joy, not external applause,” he said. “This win is for all the staff members, the players, the leaders, admin, all the people within the walls. I said before this game that I’m the right person for this job, and as long as all those people know that, that’s all I care about. I appreciate being part of this university, and all it does. I appreciate our kids and our staff, and I’m going to continue to fight on because that’s what being a Trojan is all about. Adios.”
Not exactly what you’d expect to hear from a head coach coming off a huge win over the No. 2 ranked Ohio State Buckeyes, but it’s hard to blame him for being a bit more defense than usual.
Riley’s faced a long list of questions about his job status the past few weeks, but again, those questions are legitimate. USC’s two losses this year were inexcusable. The Oregon Ducks are far from the team most expected in the preseason, and the Trojans defense let backup Dylan Raiola walk all over them in a 41-27 loss. That Wisconsin performance was dreadful, and looks even worse with the Badgers’ 30-0 loss to Iowa on Saturday.
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There have been few signature wins in the Riley era, until this one, and after an offseason marketing campaign revolving around the “championship window” now being open, sitting at 6-2 with their season on the brink is simply not good enough. But he deserves credit for the OSU win and how it played out. USC looked like a different team; prepared, focused, intense, and aggressive. Why they don’t always look like that? Nobody knows.
There are more questions moving forward though, because there always are. How do the Trojans, and Riley, respond in the final three games? The schedule doesn’t get easier, with a trip to play the Indiana Hoosiers in Bloomington next week, and a date with the now-No. 5 UCLA Bruins at the Rose Bowl to close out the season.
Win out, and the Trojans would almost certainly be in the College Football Playoff, boasting one of the best resumes in the country with three wins over top-5 teams. Lose two of the last three to Indiana and UCLA and finish 8-4? We might be talking about Riley’s buyout and that open job at Baylor all over again.