Quarterback Caleb Williams had a pedestrian performance in a 30-14 victory over WSU, and the Trojans pointed to areas where they must improve…
Adam Grosbard (OC Register) — LOS ANGELES — After USC improved to 6-0 for the first time in 16 years with a 30-14 victory over Washington State on Saturday, first-year head coach Lincoln Riley could not say enough about how he has enjoyed coaching this team.
“This team, we gotta keep doing it, but we continue to get better. We continue to lean on each other,” Riley said. “The amount of time I spend on culture, individual issues, stuff like that during the season has been minimal. … I think we’re all having a helluva lot of fun right and enjoying playing the game.”
But for the players, particularly on the offensive side of the ball, there seemed to be a sense that not everything was operating as cleanly as designed.
Look no farther than comments made by running back Travis Dye when he was asked if the team had resolved the energy problems that concerned him after the prior win over Arizona State.
I felt like we didn’t come out as flat as we did last week,” Dye said in a tepid endorsement. “There’s still a lot of things to work on energy-wise. But I feel like we came out with a little bit better energy than last week.”
In a lot of ways, USC played well on offense. The line limited Washington State to one sack and five tackles for loss, well below the Cougars’ season averages. And USC’s 181 rushing yards were the most by a Washington State opponent this year.
But the four three-and-outs lingered in USC’s mind. So did the 6-for-15 mark on third down. And the 5.3 yards per play. And the three field goals the offense had to settle for.
“We have yet to show what we really are capable of,” receiver Brenden Rice said. “We’re going to go back to work and we’re going to get this thing right.”
Part of it starts with quarterback play. Sophomore Caleb Williams, who came into the season with so much Heisman hype, was merely pedestrian for the second time in three games. He completed 15 of 29 passes for only 188 yards.
For the second time this season, he did not speak to media following the game. The other occurrence: When he went 16-for-36 for 180 yards against Oregon State.
But he was not the only issue in the passing. Were there overthrows? Yes, most notably on a deep ball to Jordan Addison after USC fell behind at home for the first time this season. Did he sometimes settle for running out of bounds for a loss of yardage instead of throwing the ball away? Yes.
But there were dropped passes, too, even from the sure-handed Mario Williams on wide-open crossing routes.
“Consistency in catching the ball. Consistency in routes,” Rice said. “If we fix up all those things, we’ll be a dominant force, the one that we know we all are capable of.”
Rice is usually a pretty chipper guy with a megawatt smile, but he spoke softly as he addressed the media Saturday. Even when asked about how USC took advantage of Washington State penalties, he quickly turned the answer around to the four flags drawn by the Trojan offense.
“On our end, we had a couple penalties, as well,” Rice said. “We need to go fix that. We definitely need to fix that because honestly, it took away from our type of football that we want to play.”
It was a dour post-game performance for an offense that just earned bowl eligibility in the minimum games required. But for a program that in recent years has celebrated just scraping by to victory, it’s not an insignificant change of tune.
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A rose bowl my family still talks to me about ????? …….January 1 2009 USC vs PENN ST (One of family members still recalls that with about 10 minutes left in that game it was 31-7 USC) and (tho I can not find a box score that confirms it ) he keep telling me that 60% of the total yards PENN ST put up in that game happened AFTER Pete Carroll took out the starters on Defense . 3 names I DO remember from that team (All Pro-bowlers in the NFL !!! ) …….Rey Maualuga ……Brian Cushing ………Clay Mathews (This… Read more »
Your family member is close. It was 31-7 after three quarters, 38-14 with 12 minutes to play. Penn State was never in the game. It reminded me of many RB games from the 60s and 70s, when the B1G teams played defense as if they’d never seen a forward pass.
That would be wild, wouldn’t it? USC has basically owned MICH since 1969, winning six of seven Rose Bowls and last playing in 2006. What a great helmet competition game too!
Ann Arbor is a fun place to see a game and will add to USC’s attractiveness to recruits. This whole transfer deal to the B1G is crazily fascinating.
This article and Kevin Bruce’s article on the late Gary P’s board make the same point – this team is far different from any we have seen since PC left. First, per Bruce, it is physical. This is not a finesse team. And, my guess is that it does practice as one. This is the first team we have taken to SLC in a long time which can match the Utah’s physicality. I know Helton won the Covid year, but I do not count that year – practices were simply different due to Covid. Second, as this article shows, SC… Read more »
I wonder if Austin Jones regrets leaving STAN for USC? He was pretty darn good at STAN, and hasn’t been bad at USC, though his blocking is surprisingly weak. But I have to admit, I like LR’s ability to allow one RB, like Dye, to play a bigger role.
Under Helton, it seemed like he was always spreading around carries too much, though maybe I’m just suffering from The Cat’s PTSD.
The call is being made mostly by the RB coach. I think the guy who must be concerned about his decision is Barlow who transferred from TCU. He is now 4th string here. I expect that Austin Jones will get his carries as will Brown. But, given the problem with protecting Caleb, my guess is Jones will need to be able to block better to get significant PT. After Utah, I would expect that Jones and Brown will get a lot of carries during the 3 games leading up to UCLA. Dye will be needed for his blocking and receiving… Read more »
I just watched Chip Kelly get interviewed by Colin Cowherd, and I have to admit he did a very good job. Good attitude too: gracious, professorial, even funny, which hasn’t always been the case in the past. I’m afraid I’m gonna have to readjust my thinking on the Bruins and their big-time offense. I know they still have a lot to prove, but DTR and Charbonnet, who gashed it for 198 on UTAH, can really bring it, just like they did last year, especially DTR, who has after 5 years looked a lot more consistent. USC vs UCLA would really… Read more »
That is their only tough game till November 19th. Oregon could very likely spoil the Bruin party. That would set up Utah-Oregon and USC-UCLA on the 19th. The winners go to the CCG.
My problem is I have a tough time ever rooting for USC’s biggest threats, and that’s not including UTAH.
This is turning out to be such a fantastic CFB season for L.A.
I wonder now, more than ever, what those inside the Pac-12 offices, or at the remaining P12 schools, are thinking about the loss of USC and UCLA in 2024?
At this time last year, who would have ever thought both USC and UCLA are in the legit hunt for a playoff spot?
I just can’t get my head around ucla being in the hunt. Perhaps they are that good, but I just have a hard time believing it. It may be that I just don’t want to.
I wasn’t sold for sure until I saw them push always tough UTAH around a little. They’re fast, experienced, playing confident, and DTR’s on fire, at least right now.
I’m looking forward to seeing USC’s surprisingly resilient and physical D against the Bruins. DTR needs to be taken down a notch again.
It’s Charbonet that has UCLA winning more than anything. No one has stopped him yet. The Chipper can call rushing plays consistently getting 4-5 yards on average and then DTR can throw a pass to BoBo when the defense expects another run. This is how Utah got beat last week.
This is UCLA’s year. SEC schedule – 8 home games and 3 non-conference cup cakes. Almost lost to one, but since that lousy game against South Alabama, UCLA has played lights out. From this date on, it will play only 3 more away games – Oregon, ASU, and Cal. I think only three remaining teams stand a legit chance of beating them: Oregon, ASU and us. And I put ASU in that group because it is a road game. SC, on the other hand, has only two league teams that stand a legit chance of beating us – Utah and… Read more »
I remain optimistic about this year’s team. I started the season cautiously optimistic and have moved to more optimistic (if that makes sense) because of what I have seen this season so far. I don’t think anyone really believed we’d be here. I expected a few bumps along the way. Pete Carroll’s first season wasn’t that great. But I see a team that doesn’t fold like an origami chicken at the first sign of trouble. Each week they have shown a resilience that winning teams have. I have a confidence they will dig as deep as necessary to beat the… Read more »
Not sure what it is about the offense lacking the level of execution we saw the beginning of the season. Are the other teams finding ways to limit the USC offensive play progressions? Are the players in too much of a comfort zone in winning these games? Is Caleb thinking too much at the LOS and standing back in the pocket too long trying to hit a home run each play? These past few games would have been closer if the defense hadn’t picked it up in their energy & aggression. Whatever it is, Utah will be going all out… Read more »
USC at UTAH this weekend would have been a great ESPN Game Day location, but the Utes took us out of contention by losing to the Bruins. I think it’ll be an incredible game in SLC and have no idea who’s gonna win. So many variables, not the least of which is mysterious 3.5-dog USC. I used to think that UTAH having to play UCLA in a hard-fought game right before USC was good for the Trojans, and would take some starch out of the Utes. But the tables have turned on me, and I’m now afraid Whittingham’s loss on… Read more »
For a 6-0 team they sound like they have lost 3 in a row. I like the attitude. There’s the old saying, “Amateurs practice till they get it right, Professionals practice till they can’t get it wrong”.
Nebraska should move fast to avoid missing chance to hire Matt Rhule | Opinion “Whoever lands Rhule will get a proven program-builder with a nearly impeccable resume as a college head coach: Between 2013 and 2019, he transformed two floundering programs, Temple and Baylor, carrying both from the bottom of the conference standings to some of the most successful years in modern program history. “Nebraska’s search for a reboot under athletics director Trev Alberts should lead directly to Rhule, who meets every prerequisite for the job as subtly outlined by Alberts in announcing Scott Frost’s dismissal last month…” Paul Myerberg (USA… Read more »
Helton’s Georgia Southern Eagles are now 3-3, and winless in the Sun Belt Conference after losing this weekend to big in-state rival/2-4 Georgia State, 41-33.
Key Stats and Notes: – State outrushed Southern 335-92. – It was State’s third straight victory over Southern. – State was +4 in turnover margin.
The Eagles host 5-0 #25 James Madison (-10.5) on Saturday in Paulson Stadium (4 pm ET, ESPN+)
Blue definitely suits him better. Plus, The Cat often looked somewhat lost on the Trojan sidelines. Here’s another version of that blank stare that tortured us: “He didn’t inspire greatness,” said Katy Garretson, USC alumna and current professor of directing at the School of Cinematic Arts. “There were just too many games we should have won because we had the better players and we were out-coached. “USC is the perennial football powerhouse on the West Coast, and without USC being good, it’s tough…,” she explained. “Under Clay, we were really not good. He was unorganized, uninspiring. Players never play to… Read more »
Good point about Darnold and Hufanga. Those were two Trojan heroes on both sides of the ball who could get themselves into trouble for trying to do too much, because they had to. But they sure were splendid to watch in C&G. Great Trojan horses.
I would only add Adoree Jackson, another one of my all-time Trojan faves. I can’t believe that 2016 was Adoree’s last USC season and that this is his 7th NFL campaign.
Sam made the Cat a wealthy man. Hufanga was the main reason for the 5-0 Covid team (and a lot of luck – I still cannot believe the ASU game that year – never seen anything like it before, doubt I will ever see anything like it sense). Hufanga was the reason SC beat UCLA that year. Without him, SC would have lost by 21. Take away Sam and Hufanga and the Cat would not have have made it to .500.
Adam Grosbard (OC Register) — LOS ANGELES — After USC improved to 6-0 for the first time in 16 years with a 30-14 victory over Washington State on Saturday, first-year head coach Lincoln Riley could not say enough about how he has enjoyed coaching this team.
“We have yet to show what we really are capable of,” receiver Brenden Rice said. “We’re going to go back to work and we’re going to get this thing right.”
A rose bowl my family still talks to me about ????? …….January 1 2009 USC vs PENN ST (One of family members still recalls that with about 10 minutes left in that game it was 31-7 USC) and (tho I can not find a box score that confirms it ) he keep telling me that 60% of the total yards PENN ST put up in that game happened AFTER Pete Carroll took out the starters on Defense . 3 names I DO remember from that team (All Pro-bowlers in the NFL !!! ) …….Rey Maualuga ……Brian Cushing ………Clay Mathews (This… Read more »
Your family member is close. It was 31-7 after three quarters, 38-14 with 12 minutes to play. Penn State was never in the game. It reminded me of many RB games from the 60s and 70s, when the B1G teams played defense as if they’d never seen a forward pass.
Bleacher Report’s College Football Playoff Projections:
LA (Dec. 17): San Jose State (4-1) vs. Washington (4-2)
Holiday (Dec. 28): Pittsburgh (4-2) vs. Washington (4-2)
Sun (Dec. 30): Florida State (4-2) vs. Oregon State (4-2)
Las Vegas (Dec. 17): Mississippi State (5-1) vs. Utah (4-2)
Alamo (Dec. 29): TCU (5-0) vs. UCLA (6-0)
Cotton (Jan. 2): Cincinnati (5-1) vs. Oregon (5-1)
Rose (Jan. 2): Michigan (6-0) vs. USC (6-0)
Peach (Dec. 31): No. 1 Alabama (6-0) vs. No. 4 Clemson (6-0)
Fiesta (Dec. 31): No. 2 Ohio State (6-0) vs. No. 3 Georgia (6-0)
National Championship (Jan. 9): No. 1 Alabama vs. No. 2 Ohio State
bleacherreport.com
Rose vs Michigan … now we are talking
That would be wild, wouldn’t it? USC has basically owned MICH since 1969, winning six of seven Rose Bowls and last playing in 2006. What a great helmet competition game too!
Ann Arbor is a fun place to see a game and will add to USC’s attractiveness to recruits. This whole transfer deal to the B1G is crazily fascinating.
I have never lost money betting against Michigan
This article and Kevin Bruce’s article on the late Gary P’s board make the same point – this team is far different from any we have seen since PC left. First, per Bruce, it is physical. This is not a finesse team. And, my guess is that it does practice as one. This is the first team we have taken to SLC in a long time which can match the Utah’s physicality. I know Helton won the Covid year, but I do not count that year – practices were simply different due to Covid. Second, as this article shows, SC… Read more »
I wonder if Austin Jones regrets leaving STAN for USC? He was pretty darn good at STAN, and hasn’t been bad at USC, though his blocking is surprisingly weak. But I have to admit, I like LR’s ability to allow one RB, like Dye, to play a bigger role.
Under Helton, it seemed like he was always spreading around carries too much, though maybe I’m just suffering from The Cat’s PTSD.
He was a force early … and still has a big place
Sure hope so, because USC’s gonna need him. Slipping its hand into LR’s giant bag of tricks seems to be this year’s USC Trojan football trademark.
The call is being made mostly by the RB coach. I think the guy who must be concerned about his decision is Barlow who transferred from TCU. He is now 4th string here. I expect that Austin Jones will get his carries as will Brown. But, given the problem with protecting Caleb, my guess is Jones will need to be able to block better to get significant PT. After Utah, I would expect that Jones and Brown will get a lot of carries during the 3 games leading up to UCLA. Dye will be needed for his blocking and receiving… Read more »
Doubtful anyone makes a decision for LR … he looks in complete command of everything SC does
I just watched Chip Kelly get interviewed by Colin Cowherd, and I have to admit he did a very good job. Good attitude too: gracious, professorial, even funny, which hasn’t always been the case in the past. I’m afraid I’m gonna have to readjust my thinking on the Bruins and their big-time offense. I know they still have a lot to prove, but DTR and Charbonnet, who gashed it for 198 on UTAH, can really bring it, just like they did last year, especially DTR, who has after 5 years looked a lot more consistent. USC vs UCLA would really… Read more »
That is their only tough game till November 19th. Oregon could very likely spoil the Bruin party. That would set up Utah-Oregon and USC-UCLA on the 19th. The winners go to the CCG.
My problem is I have a tough time ever rooting for USC’s biggest threats, and that’s not including UTAH.
This is turning out to be such a fantastic CFB season for L.A.
I wonder now, more than ever, what those inside the Pac-12 offices, or at the remaining P12 schools, are thinking about the loss of USC and UCLA in 2024?
At this time last year, who would have ever thought both USC and UCLA are in the legit hunt for a playoff spot?
I just can’t get my head around ucla being in the hunt. Perhaps they are that good, but I just have a hard time believing it. It may be that I just don’t want to.
I wasn’t sold for sure until I saw them push always tough UTAH around a little. They’re fast, experienced, playing confident, and DTR’s on fire, at least right now.
I’m looking forward to seeing USC’s surprisingly resilient and physical D against the Bruins. DTR needs to be taken down a notch again.
It’s Charbonet that has UCLA winning more than anything. No one has stopped him yet. The Chipper can call rushing plays consistently getting 4-5 yards on average and then DTR can throw a pass to BoBo when the defense expects another run. This is how Utah got beat last week.
This is UCLA’s year. SEC schedule – 8 home games and 3 non-conference cup cakes. Almost lost to one, but since that lousy game against South Alabama, UCLA has played lights out. From this date on, it will play only 3 more away games – Oregon, ASU, and Cal. I think only three remaining teams stand a legit chance of beating them: Oregon, ASU and us. And I put ASU in that group because it is a road game. SC, on the other hand, has only two league teams that stand a legit chance of beating us – Utah and… Read more »
I remain optimistic about this year’s team. I started the season cautiously optimistic and have moved to more optimistic (if that makes sense) because of what I have seen this season so far. I don’t think anyone really believed we’d be here. I expected a few bumps along the way. Pete Carroll’s first season wasn’t that great. But I see a team that doesn’t fold like an origami chicken at the first sign of trouble. Each week they have shown a resilience that winning teams have. I have a confidence they will dig as deep as necessary to beat the… Read more »
I’m not very confident USC will win. But we have a heckuva good shot.
Love your line about USC Folding like an Origami Chicken under The Cat. That’s a classic.
Not sure what it is about the offense lacking the level of execution we saw the beginning of the season. Are the other teams finding ways to limit the USC offensive play progressions? Are the players in too much of a comfort zone in winning these games? Is Caleb thinking too much at the LOS and standing back in the pocket too long trying to hit a home run each play? These past few games would have been closer if the defense hadn’t picked it up in their energy & aggression. Whatever it is, Utah will be going all out… Read more »
USC at UTAH this weekend would have been a great ESPN Game Day location, but the Utes took us out of contention by losing to the Bruins. I think it’ll be an incredible game in SLC and have no idea who’s gonna win. So many variables, not the least of which is mysterious 3.5-dog USC. I used to think that UTAH having to play UCLA in a hard-fought game right before USC was good for the Trojans, and would take some starch out of the Utes. But the tables have turned on me, and I’m now afraid Whittingham’s loss on… Read more »
For a 6-0 team they sound like they have lost 3 in a row. I like the attitude. There’s the old saying, “Amateurs practice till they get it right, Professionals practice till they can’t get it wrong”.
Hard to believe USC leading the nation in sacks. Considering last season, what a turn around.
GT, Exactly the attitude one would wish It is a championship attitude. They know they must improve and play better.
Two keys to this weeks game, Caleb being on his game and the defense being healthy. With those going for us USC has a great shot at winning.
Nebraska should move fast to avoid missing chance to hire Matt Rhule | Opinion “Whoever lands Rhule will get a proven program-builder with a nearly impeccable resume as a college head coach: Between 2013 and 2019, he transformed two floundering programs, Temple and Baylor, carrying both from the bottom of the conference standings to some of the most successful years in modern program history. “Nebraska’s search for a reboot under athletics director Trev Alberts should lead directly to Rhule, who meets every prerequisite for the job as subtly outlined by Alberts in announcing Scott Frost’s dismissal last month…” Paul Myerberg (USA… Read more »
The Clay Helton Watch
Helton’s Georgia Southern Eagles are now 3-3, and winless in the Sun Belt Conference after losing this weekend to big in-state rival/2-4 Georgia State, 41-33.
Key Stats and Notes:
– State outrushed Southern 335-92.
– It was State’s third straight victory over Southern.
– State was +4 in turnover margin.
The Eagles host 5-0 #25 James Madison (-10.5) on Saturday in Paulson Stadium (4 pm ET, ESPN+)
Blue makes the Cat look less bloated, don’t you think?
Blue definitely suits him better. Plus, The Cat often looked somewhat lost on the Trojan sidelines. Here’s another version of that blank stare that tortured us: “He didn’t inspire greatness,” said Katy Garretson, USC alumna and current professor of directing at the School of Cinematic Arts. “There were just too many games we should have won because we had the better players and we were out-coached. “USC is the perennial football powerhouse on the West Coast, and without USC being good, it’s tough…,” she explained. “Under Clay, we were really not good. He was unorganized, uninspiring. Players never play to… Read more »
I would add, There were just too many games we should have lost because we were out coached but won with better players, the Darnolds and Hufangas.
Good point about Darnold and Hufanga. Those were two Trojan heroes on both sides of the ball who could get themselves into trouble for trying to do too much, because they had to. But they sure were splendid to watch in C&G. Great Trojan horses.
I would only add Adoree Jackson, another one of my all-time Trojan faves. I can’t believe that 2016 was Adoree’s last USC season and that this is his 7th NFL campaign.
Sam made the Cat a wealthy man. Hufanga was the main reason for the 5-0 Covid team (and a lot of luck – I still cannot believe the ASU game that year – never seen anything like it before, doubt I will ever see anything like it sense). Hufanga was the reason SC beat UCLA that year. Without him, SC would have lost by 21. Take away Sam and Hufanga and the Cat would not have have made it to .500.
Losing to rivals is what The Cat does best.
Without the talent he had at USC he is nothing. He will be exposed at GSU as most of us expected. He should have a nice nest egg to retire in comfort.