USC’s comeback against Notre Dame falls painfully short
Two late pick-sixes by the Fighting Irish seal a win over the Trojans that was closer than the 49-35 final score
Notre Dame’s Christian Gray intercepts a pass intended for USC WR Kyron Hudson before returning it 99 yds for a TD late in the 4th quarter of the Fighting Irish’s 49-35 victory earlier today, at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, OCR / SCNG)
Luca Evans (OC Register) — LOS ANGELES — The roars reverberated around a weary Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, a salute to a program that was flawed and fragile but always fearless, the spirit of USC’s faithful roaring to life in the fourth quarter Saturday afternoon in a moment of sheer Southern California pride unlike anything before in 2024.
They had no business, really, being in this spot. The Trojans’ backs had been against the wall, on their home turf, from kickoff against Notre Dame. Heroic running back Woody Marks was sidelined, and Lincoln Riley’s play-calling well had dried up. Notre Dame’s offensive line and ground game had bludgeoned USC’s defensive front into the Southern California turf.
Trojans quarterback Jayden Maiava seemingly was using up every drop of juice available in his right arm. And yet the ballgame still hung in the balance, USC down just a score against the fifth-ranked team in the nation and moving with four minutes left, a timeout setting off an avalanche of appreciation.
They’d fought, for one more day. For one final series. For one more play.
And in the span of a blink, their comeback bid collapsed, sealing an 49-35 loss to Notre Dame that ended a season of true Greek tragedy in sheer Greek tragedy.
With a first-and-10 on Notre Dame’s 21-yard-line, quarterback Jayden Maiava pulled back a play-action, fearless as ever in testing one of the toughest secondaries in the country. Star running back Marks had exited in the first quarter, and USC’s offense had become wholly reliant on Maiava’s ability to find his receivers deep. For much of the night, he’d been up to the challenge, finishing 27 of 49 for 360 yards and accounting for five touchdowns.
Down 35-28 with less than four minutes to play, with Kyron Hudson streaking deep, Maiava opted for a back-shoulder toss instead of the bread-basket dimes he’d been dropping all day. Hudson stumbled, unable to come back to the ball. And Notre Dame’s Christian Gray intercepted Maiava’s toss, then streaked down the left sideline with nobody in cardinal-and-gold in his way, shutting down USC’s comeback bid in one fell swoop with a 99-yard touchdown return.
Maiava stumbled to the sideline in sheer despair, offensive lineman Amos Talalele offering a steadying arm of support around the quarterback’s waist. But not two minutes later, a last-gasp heave from the 13-yard line was picked off again, this one returned for a 100-yard touchdown by Notre Dame’s Xavier Watts for an improbably gut-wrenching sequence to bury USC’s rivalry hopes.
The Trojans did not break for three quarters, as the Fighting Irish punched D’Anton Lynn’s front in the mouth from the opening kickoff; literally, as Notre Dame’s Rylie Mills took a fist directly to USC left guard Emmanuel Pregnon’s helmet on one first-half goal-line play.
Instead, Lynn’s defense congealed for a half, and Riley’s offense hummed against a truly elite Notre Dame unit. Needing a spark after a brutal first quarter, Trojans cornerback Jacobe Covington came in heat-seeking on the first play of the second quarter and popped the ball free with his helmet on a catch from Notre Dame’s Jayden Thomas. Joyner, in a gutsy performance stepping up for Marks, one-handed a pretty 13-yard screen drawn up by Riley to set up a short touchdown keeper by Maiava.
And on an afternoon where USC paraded around Chicago Bears quarterback and former Trojans star Caleb Williams in reconfirming his jersey retirement, Maiava authored his own spiritual succession to Williams’ 2022 Heisman-making moment against Notre Dame. The UNLV transfer has been born to sling, with an unshakeable faith in his right arm that at times veered into dangerous territory in his first two starts against Nebraska and UCLA. The goal, as Riley made clear a couple weeks back, was not to change Maiava. It was to refine him.
The redshirt sophomore played with a veteran’s gall Saturday, in a standing ovation of an audition for Riley’s QB1 job in 2025. With USC down 14-7 and just a minute remaining in the first half, Maiava let it rip without a shred of fear: three deep balls in the span of five plays resulted in an incompletion, a 35-yard hit to Makai Lemon and a pass interference call on Notre Dame for blanketing Ja’Kobi Lane, setting up a touchdown slant from Maiava to Lane. He ran for another score on a Superman-like leap in the third quarter, his second 1-yard touchdown on the day. He led USC back downfield, against all odds, late in that fourth quarter, down 35-28.
But he was forced to fight all too often from behind, the Fighting Irish steamrolling Lynn’s defense on the ground all afternoon to the tune of 260 yards and three scores on 37 carries. USC was often too thin up front against Notre Dame’s offensive line.
And a final touchdown from Maiava to Lane with 13 seconds left – Lane’s third of the day – came too late, as these Trojans finally fell.
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I’ve done some homework for my fellow TDBers. I took a look at all ~30 CFB coaches who landed in new spots in 2022 and compiled how the more prominent ones in the bigger conferences have done. I’ve sorted them in order of winning %, their current status in their conference, and my comments as to whether I’d take them as a replacement for LR. (There were some interesting ones the year before, like Fickel to WI, Josh Heupel to TN and Rhule to Neb, but I kept it apples-to-apples for the number of years at the start of 2022.)… Read more »
USC QB Miller Moss officially enters transfer portal Moss announced his decision Monday to transfer from USC, which seemed likely since the Trojans’ late-season QB change to Jayden Maiava Luca Evans (OC Register) — On Monday morning, Moss announced on Instagram he’d enter the transfer portal, penning a few lengthy paragraphs of thanks and reflection on his time in Southern California. “Being a USC Trojan was a lifelong dream of mine,” Moss wrote. “Putting on the cardinal and gold and competing on behalf of my teammates and school is something I will forever take pride in.” “I poured everything I… Read more »
SC’s defense was definitely improved this year but you couldn’t get any worse than last years defense. The fact is SC’s defense ended up 70th in the nation while UCLA’s (with far less talent) ended up 40th. And UCLA didn’t play a bunch of cupcakes.They played Indiana, LSU, Oregon, Penn State, Minnesota, Iowa, Washington and SC. I think their defensive coaching staff did a better job that we did….again, with far less talent.
If you aren’t really pleased with the job our defensive staff did this year, then you obviously know nothing about football. ucla’s DC and staff did a nice job, but no one would any sane person trade that group for Lynn, Nua, Henderson, Belk, or Entz.
You are proving what is great about this board. Anyone with zero knowledge about college football can post their opinion.
People with untrained eyes are seeing Riley as the snake oil salesman that he is. The problem is so are impressionable minds in high school football programs. (who are trained) The days of going to a college because they heard the name broadcast on grandpa’s Motorola radio (or Zenith radio dial) are long gone. In this day and age a national program like USC has every play analyzed in every imaginable space. It is little wonder that highly touted football recruits want out of their commitment. I used to think it was the kids, but even if they didn’t see… Read more »
I think we are finding out quickly how much of a raw talent Jayden Miava is. And where the program is right now in needing a stable-dependable QB to give the offense, however spotty it is presently, a chance to hold its own in games. Does Riley have the time & patience to mold him sufficiently as the program struggles?
I have been pretty critical of the HC and his illogical approach to all facets of his job. I thought of a different angle over night. A term called “The Contract Curse”. An athlete/coach does exceptionally well in the last years of their current contract but see a drop in performance once they get a mega deal. Why? Most of us including myself have focused on diminished motivation and complacency. There is the other possibility, the pressure to live up to the high value of the contract leading to performance anxiety. That could explain a lot of his behavior and… Read more »
Ah, poor Lincoln. Let’s give him a nice little Trojan jacketed Teddy Bear for Xmas which will sing Fight On! to him when he winds it up. Maybe that will help his “performance anxiety” as you call it. We just have to make sure his Trojan Teddy is small enough to keep next to him on the sidelines when his playcalling gets confused and bizarre. Great Comedy Club Post GT. All in good fun, of course. 😂 😂 Sadly, quite a few of us feel at least a little sorry for Lincoln and the big hole he’s dug for himself… Read more »
Could Carol Folt’s impending retirement affect a decision about LR’s continued employment? Specifically I’m wondering if it would be easier to cut ties while Carol Folt has lame duck status rather than deal with a new president in the future.
There is little doubt LR has the football program stuck in the mud after 3-years of questionable directions leading to any promises of rebuilding when the better linemen are leaving and no suitable replacement is ready to take their place. Looking at the state of the program right now, no one is even suggesting the football program will take a leap forward in both lines looking to execute sufficiently without again dipping into the Portal to find more needed help and thus depending on one year wonders to come in temporarily and having little to show for it in 2026.… Read more »
Let’s take a look at next year’s schedule.I’m leaving out the two first useless home games which must be wins or there will be a riot. Home to Iowa, Michigan, Mich State,Northwestern, UCLA. At Notre Dame, Illinois, Nebraska, Oregon, Purdue. I see 6 wins again maybe a 7th if everything goes right. Thank goodness we manage to miss Ohio State again. What will the excuses be next year? We keep losing commits, the two “best” O linemen are off to the NFL along with Woody. How badly do we get hammered in the portal with players being frustrated and decide… Read more »
I don’t know why ND is getting so much praise for beating SC. There are 35 teams in the AP poll that received votes. SC isn’t one of them. Yet, I thought SC outshined ND in that game everywhere but on the scoreboard, so what’s the big deal? ND beat Army. They received 182 votes on the AP poll.Nobody thought much of that. So, again, what’s the big deal.
ND ran for 258 yds on us, basically at will. That’s an incredible ground attack which usually both controls and wins games. Their OL totally abused us. If it wasn’t their running backs, it was their keenly deft QB Riley Leonard who often slithered through the USC D like butter. Then with the game on the line in the friendly Coliseum within easy reach of any good team, Jayden Maiava throws two absolutely horrible passes which two different ND DBs return 100 yds untouched down the sidelines while USC players appear stuck to the ground far away watching ND gleefully… Read more »
SC gained 240 yards in the 4th quarter while ND gained 5. Our offense outscored their offense 14-0 in the 4th quarter. But like I said…..that’s our identity……play hard and find some miraculous way to snatch defeat from the hands victory in the fourth quarter
It’s great to hear your perspective and a strong, well-expressed example to me of how totally differently we all see games on occasion.
USC got greased and run over as predicted by a better team and in the opinion of myself and several old USC friends I watched the game with.
In the end, I couldn’t care less about any stats anyway. For me, it’s all about scoreboard and USC lost again to ND as usual, and by a large margin as well.
I’d also take Marcus Freeman as our coach any day of the week over Lincoln Riley.
Oh, I’d love to have Marcus Freeman. I’m not too confident that it’s going to happen but if it does, bring your whole staff with you. All I’m saying is that they do have an identity…..their identity is to miraculously find ways to lose games in the 4th quarter. It’s a mental thing. Championship teams have a mental attitude where they refuse to lose especially in close games. I haven’t seen that in these LR teams.
USC is currently at one of the lowest points in its storied football history after so many years of utter mediocrity. At least that’s the way it seems to be to me. JMHO. I have no idea when Lincoln Riley expects USC to turn it around. Are USC’s prospects any better for the 2025 season? If so, I can’t with any honesty say why. We’re losing some of our better players for sure, recruiting is meh, big coaching issues exist, Trojan fan morale is low, and it seems like we need a lot of help through the always-challenging Portal, which… Read more »
SC should have won the ND game. They lost by 2 TD’s and they gave ND 2 TD’s on pick sixes. The game would have been tied and went into overtime. But don’t forget……on both pick sixes they were driving and would have had more points. That would have given them the victory. The football pundants are all asking what is the Trojans identity? That is their identity. Their identity is to be in the game and have victory in their reach and then find a way to lose the game. That is their identity.
I kind of see USC going the way of Nebraska football. Does anyone remember when Nebraska was relevant? I remember Nebraska was a contender every season. I had a friend who was a.big Nebraska fan, he’d always claim they were better than USC. But then they went through a series of poor coaching choices until they are a has been program. USC is one season away from becoming a has been program and it’s hard to watch.
LIVE and DIE by the LONG BALL: Some baseball teams opt for aggressive swinging, thus hitting more home runs, but also more strike outs. Likewise, some football coaches like “Long Ball Riley” choose the less reliable long ball over the foundational “dink and dunk”.
Where is USC football headed under Lincoln Riley? The road forward is hazy… Antonio Morales (The Athletic) — USC has no central identity that it can build around, and it shows. That’s a major issue when it’s Year 3 for Lincoln Riley. USC, as it so often has this season, made a critical error yesterday in the worst possible moment. Make no mistake, Notre Dame (11-1) was clearly the better team on Saturday. The Trojans were good enough to compete and make it close. Not good enough when it mattered though, and that’s ultimately the story of USC’s season. The… Read more »
A year ago USC made wholesale changes to the defensive staff. Now it is time to do the same to the offensive staff. SLR is trying to be the Jack Of All Trades on offense and is the Master of None. His game plans are writing checks his players can’t cash. USC has an offensive coordinator, assistant head coach for offense, offensive passing game coordinator, run game coordinator. Henson’s resume is vanilla for an OL coach let alone OC. They need an OC that is in charge of the offense. They need an OL coach that has played and coached… Read more »
A lot is going to be said after the bowl game and it’s going to be very critical. So just two things now: If the 2025 season winds up similar or worse, I think Jen Cohend is going to be screamed at to do something by the fanbase. And, Lincoln Riley needs to seriously look at himself in the mirror and realize too many issues have held the program back from where it should be today and it’s all from his decisions.
Ya, Jen Cohen got off easy this season because she didn’t even take the USC AD job until late August 2023, before LR did a complete USC football faceplant the last two seasons.
2025 will put Cohen on the proverbial hot seat if LR continues to stumble into Trojan gridiron oblivion.
How she manipulates things to fix USC’s everlasting football problems if that occurs is anyone’s guess.
Maybe USC will install a GM, that could be good for Riley, the GM can show him the error of his ways. Just make sure the GM knows what he is talking about.
How about PC.
The offense looked great against ND. 560 yards against one of the best defenses in the country? I’d say that’s pretty good. Only 4 teams all year gained over 300 yards on them…..the highest being Louisville with 395. Unfortunately, too little too late. I still support LR. Might as well. He’s going to be there for awhile unless he decides to cut and run.
From Athlon:
With Week 14 completed, Athlon Sports projects the CFP field for 2024:
College Football Playoff 12-Team Preseason Projections for 2024The Projected Field for 2024-25
1. Oregon (Projected Big Ten Champion)
2. Texas (Projected SEC Champion)
3. SMU (Projected ACC Champion)
4. Boise State (Projected MW Champion)
5. Penn State
6. Notre Dame
7. Georgia
8. Ohio State
9. Tennessee
10. Indiana
11. Alabama
12. Arizona State (Projected Big 12 Champion)
5* WR Jerome Myles decommits from USC. TAMU likely school. Kind of weird since USC just flipped Hasan from TAMU.
Now use the NIL $$$ on the linemen.
Wearesc predicts USC signs Christian Ingram,3* and Jakeem Stewart 5*, both DL and big.
Column: USC coach Lincoln Riley has imprisoned the hopeless Trojans in a cycle of non-contender mediocrity Dylan Hernandez (2002 UCLA grad, LA Times) — This season is officially worse than the last, USC completing its regular season with a 6-6 record and probably destined for a minor bowl in a desert wasteland. Remember how an 8-5 season last year felt as if it was rock bottom? Well, things have unraveled at USC to the point where the infamous Clay Helton era, in retrospect, is starting to look half-decent. Following a 49-35 defeat to No. 5 Notre Dame at the Coliseum on Saturday, Lincoln Riley has a 25-14… Read more »
Good observations. I have felt down since Miller Moss played his heart out behind a lousy OL, yet had to be benched. Hopeless is a pretty good description of my depression about our program.
I see your sarcasm and what is USC’s run game ranked?! You will not survive in the Big-10 with Pass Pass Pass. Running the ball first open’s up bigger plays for WR because they have to respect the run. Also what’s USC’s offensive line ranked?!
So that unfortunately went the way I expected. ND’s #11 ranked run game pounded the ball mercilessly. SLR couldn’t help himself. Told his ragged inaccurate QB to pass 65% of the time against the #1 pass defense. Pass, pass, pass till the Pick 6s did them in. 6-7 is a real possibility, especially if it’s the Sun Bowl, players will opt out or transfer, those that are left to play will not be too thrilled with El Paso in December. They might get up for Vegas. Now what comes next. SLR is too expensive to fire unless they work a… Read more »
Yeh I mean you are not creating a desire to come to USC through attitude and culture. So bye not paying full NIL money too players your making it even worse to try and build a program.
NIL point. If SC was actually building a culture and desire for recruits to come to the program I would feel completely different about NIL, but LR is not that type of coach so that makes the NIL part stick out even more. Just saying
Riley is bottoming out USC football. He’s got several years before he can be bought out. We are in crisis mode so something out of the box is necessary. Not just us bitching. It puts a two time national champion head coach in charge of the program before USC becomes a forgotten memory. Entz will stabilize.
The McCaskey’s will never hire LR as HC. They will simply appoint an interim HC to fill in for Eberfus. A permanent hire will follow. They still own 80 per cent shares of the Chicago Bears. They retained and grew that wealth by not overpaying for retread HC’s. No way will they buy any portion of USC’s “desperation” contract with LR. If USC wants LR gone, we’re going to have to pay him fair market value to buy him out. Those Rhodes Scholars Folt and Bohn sold this colossal, illusory contract to the BOT. Now both are gone and we… Read more »
I 100% think a new coach is warranted, however SC cannot afford to make a backwards move for a new coach. LR has an 80 mil contract. So if you get rid of him too early that means you are settling for someone less than LR most likely. Whether we like it or not LR gets recruits because of his name, it’s just not the right recruits. Therefore you need to replace a name with a name Defensively. We will loose recruits and be worse if that is not how you replace LR, and too me going to old school… Read more »
Who knows, but he is only going into year 4. He had to move conferences. I don’t really like anything I’ve seen from him yet. I don’t think SC will fire him yet. I think SC has a problem with hiring the right guy for there needs and they rush decisions and then you end up with a coaching carousel and wonder why you can’t build a program. Gotta hire based on the needs and direction of the team, and program first and foremost, and then you need to trust the process. For 5 or more years.
Where were you when they hired him? I think most of us were over the top excited. But then we have to remember what we had before. I have resigned myself to the fact he is going to remain, and in that I have decided to try to be positive, at least as much as I can.
The reason I was never sold on Riley is because he didn’t fit the bill of need. And that’s why SC is in a coaching carousel. Because of rushed decisions and need. We got Caleb Williams who cares. You wasted his whole career at SC because you don’t recruit in the trenches. How many Heisman Trophy QB’s have we had. That’s not what wins championships. SC gets the best QB’s and WR’s automatically. The Problem is culture, attitude, accountability, and mental toughness. You need to return old school mentality to this program especially if we are going to survive in… Read more »
We can’t keep Riley for 5 years. The program will be destroyed for 5-10 years
at that point. We will have about as much football glory as the University of Chicago has today.
What is there not to complain about LR and SC. Red Zone issues lol. Well Marks is stud RB. You don’t score in the Red Zone because you don’t recruit offensive lineman for one, and number 2 you think you can just blow people out and win games with passing. You’re not going to win championships or a lot of games when the defense knows you’re just going to pass the ball all day long. Bigger plays and points come to WR’s and your team running first and softening up the defense. Also did Maiava have 6 TD’ s in… Read more »
Lincoln Riley’s weak post-ND loss “coachspeak” for our “untrained eyes” only —
Riley — “I could sit up here for an hour and talk about the things that I know are happening within this program. I could rattle off all the stats. I could show you the facilities. I could show you recruiting. I can show you the staff. I could go on about that for an hour. I just don’t think it’s the appropriate time right now.”
I agree with the size disparity. The moment ND came out of that tunnel to our boos, then lined up for their first offensive snap, it was jaw dropping. I’m proud of our kids who were able to pull it together and make as many stops as they did. LR by focus and reputation has never been a trench position guy nor defensive guy. Didn’t have to. At OU the fan distraction was his productive qb’s and playoff appearances coming from the B12. The B1G is a power conference that’s night and day from the former B12 and PAC12. The… Read more »
Wouldn’t doubt it already lost some big 4 star DL too. Wasted talent of Marks not recruiting O-lineman, but hey I’ll replace the RB coach it’s his fault. You should have hired the best offensive line coach you can that can help with recruits and start developing lineman!!!
You’re probably reading about Carde Smith. Let us hope it is not another. Dunn and Payne are still showing with us…..and as you know, we need them very badly.
This old Trojan is 100% in favor of keeping D Coach Lynn. But what chaps my ass is the continual disparity in size between our defensive players and Notre Dame, for example. Lynn needs to take that 15 hour flight down to Tonga. There are numerous high schools, usually affiliated with churches. The average high school Tongan defensive lineman exceeds 325 pounds. The last USC coach who recruited there was Pete Carroll. The behemoth O lineman he came back with opened car sized holes for RB. Or, LR can spin another fiction about how many pounds his team put on… Read more »
After rewatching the game…..I am more convinced than ever that a new coach is warranted.
Unfortunately, I suspect the powers that be will force the program to waste another year being mismanaged.
He is deficient in so many areas it is amazing that he still has his job.
Just one point that has been made many times…..our special teams continue to be horrible. Why we don’t have a coach…nobody knows……well……we know……Riley wanted the money for himself.
You make an excellent point. Riley was shown up by the fighting Irish special teams in ways which boggled the mind. The fake punt is a great example. The Trojan eleven on the field looked around in disbelief as if they didn’t know if what was happening in front of them was even legal. Every kickoff from the leprechauns dropped before the goal line, not because their kicker is weak, but because their pursuit team is better than our blocking. The glaring lack of special teams coaching was exposed several times by the Irish. When ND finally punted I watched… Read more »
You can say what you want about LR. You might think that he is terrrible. You might think that he’s better than average but not great.You might think that he is an up and coming coach who is growing towards greatness. But one thing is for sure…..this guy is not worth $100 million.
You might think that they (as a team) have this strength or that strength but there number one strength is their ability to snatch defeat from the hands of victory. They’re really good at that.
A lot of things that Riley gets blamed for is correct. One thing I always wonder about is had the players executed correctly would the result still be the same? Riley doesn’t throw, block, or tackle. He doesn’t drop passes, miss kicks, or get caught out of position. What Riley gets paid is irrelevant to me, it isn’t my money. But then I wish I was a college coach making the type of money they do these days. I do not believe Riley is going anywhere soon, and perhaps with some additions to the team, that execution will get better.… Read more »
I didn’t watch the game but checked up from time-to-time on my ESPN app. My health just can’t handle a lot of stress and watching live stresses me out. Couldn’t sleep very well, so I watched the highlights on U-Tube early Sunday morning. USC gave up too many rushing yards to ND. I do believe the defense has improved under Lynn, but it still has a way to go. It will be interesting to see what bowl game SC ends up in.
Back in August who would have thought SMU, Indiana, and Army would have such a good shot at playing in the CFP. The portal has helped bring some parity to college ball and then look at Vanderbilt.
The waiting game is about to spin. Will Jen have the huevos she needs to exorcise our demons? Just after early signing is complete she should summon the staff to her office and either fire or demote Riley. He has the team on probation so, she has cause. We have a coach on staff that was a successful head coach in a lower division. In theory he could be interim for the bowl game. The one thing I do know is Riley has proven himself incapable of turning anything other than a phrase around and I doubt he won’t learn… Read more »
That’s another game SC could have won(even should have won). Look at the box score. SC dominated the categories.Take away the 2 pick sixes and it’s a 35-35 tie but consider that on both of those picks SC was driving towards another TD. Never have I ever seen a team that could find a way to snatch defeat from the hands of victory like this team.
Remember when McKay suggested his players deserved “execution” when the word was tossed around in a performance context by an NFL reporter and McKay blurted out, “I’m all for it.”, or something to that effect when he was coaching Tampa Bay.
I don’t think Lincoln Riley is even capable of generating a laugh from the press or fans. He generates simple skepticism at best nowadays.
Lynn did what he could … well timed blitz and whiffs ND backs bigger than SC linebackers no name front 4 all smaller than ND tight ends
3rd team CBs and Shaw still playing
D got them ball back when had to Lynn is a keeper
That has been asked before and I think he will, for one thing he has just recruited his first class, he loves working with the guys around him, the money is good, he really likes LR, and if I remember right he committed to USC for 2 or 3 years.
Now his staff may not all stay. Entz is being considered for the Fresno HC job.
Oh so close one play away Coach Lincoln Riley came to USC to change the culture and has whiffed on every aspect except one. The one he’s getting right is defense. The rest of his game plan is the same as all of the other inexperienced head coaches after Pete Carroll. Look up the three most recent coaches USC has let go and you’ll find winners at every stop Georgia Southern has a winning record. Ole Miss has a winning record and everyone knows about Texas. What stands out about this is the way all three of these coaches went… Read more »
Ya ditch the overrated big talking OC and get a DC in here to change to tough ball
This job was too big for them and now LR
Gomer is where he belongs Georgia St or whatever
Kiffy schedules garbage and with 6 year qb and vet team failed .. again
Suck saved by Texas $$$$ and still just slipping by except vs only good team he played
Heartbreaking loss today (again) . The 99 yard pick six basically cleared out the Coli. Thankful for the great fan atmosphere as the team played their hearts out. I know this was only his third game and I do think he is an upgrade over Miller, but Maiva is not the guy as in my opinion, he doesn’t have the “it” factor. I know he’s young but he seems to robotic and unemotional and lacks field leadership qualities. ✌️
That call 4 minutes left … 1st down SC rolling, chance to tie score, run clock, rest D, shorten game all at once. Joyner unstoppable, LR calls complete dumb ass call again.
Like he did all season long. Does not know how to manage a game.
Agreed. Neither Maiava nor Moss are great QB’s. They are better than average but not great. That’s part of the problem with the offense. You need an outstanding QB. Maiava is robotic. I don’t think he will ever play at the pro level. He doesn’t have a quick release. He winds up like a baseball pitcher. That gives early warning to those quick cornerbacks in the pros as to what you are going to do. Also, those receivers don’t get separation. Lane and Robinson get catches because they can go up higher but it doesn’t seem like they are ever… Read more »
Riley is tunnel-vision focused on QBs. The NFL is a QB league—that’s where Riley should go. Make life miserable for this punk kid until he accepts a reasonable buy-out.
I do have to agree with Riley somewhat, not completely, that some of the problems are from execution or lack of. Other times it is what was called to begin with. For some reason the defense looks okay for the talent they have. One real dominant D lineman will lift the entire defense. I can see guys have improved, especially tackling.
Tonight the running game looked good after Woody went down.
It was a long drive home, but you know what? The kids played their hearts out, got punched in the mouth with ND’s punishing running game, and as they’ve done the entire season, punched back. As AW indicated, the Coliseum was PC days loud and raucous. The Penn St game was close. So….. the elephant in the room is our coach. There’s quite a few areas to improve, but most wonder if he agrees. If he nods yes, will he actually do something without internal and external pressure ? He’s young, very young, no experience with rebuilding, only experience with… Read more »
Long ball Riley: 4th and 3, only down by 7= get the FIRST down with a high percentage short pass; don’t go for the low percentage long ball. Riley is not going to change his “chancy” play calls, so you have to change him.
Our skill players are fine. Until we beef and skill up both trenches, this is what we’ll be indefinitely. No revelation, I know, we’ve been saying this for 3 years, but unless LR actually does something about it, we’ll still be saying it in another 3 years.
Perhaps he will be bringing in some new OL and DL with this 2025 class. There are other guys at USC coming up also. The portal hopefully will get us a couple on both sides. Then we have to worry about the guys leaving, except for Mason, we won’t miss him.
I’ve done some homework for my fellow TDBers. I took a look at all ~30 CFB coaches who landed in new spots in 2022 and compiled how the more prominent ones in the bigger conferences have done. I’ve sorted them in order of winning %, their current status in their conference, and my comments as to whether I’d take them as a replacement for LR. (There were some interesting ones the year before, like Fickel to WI, Josh Heupel to TN and Rhule to Neb, but I kept it apples-to-apples for the number of years at the start of 2022.)… Read more »
USC QB Miller Moss officially enters transfer portal Moss announced his decision Monday to transfer from USC, which seemed likely since the Trojans’ late-season QB change to Jayden Maiava Luca Evans (OC Register) — On Monday morning, Moss announced on Instagram he’d enter the transfer portal, penning a few lengthy paragraphs of thanks and reflection on his time in Southern California. “Being a USC Trojan was a lifelong dream of mine,” Moss wrote. “Putting on the cardinal and gold and competing on behalf of my teammates and school is something I will forever take pride in.” “I poured everything I… Read more »
I guess Riley intends to either use Longstreet as the backup or attract a portal transfer.
SC’s defense was definitely improved this year but you couldn’t get any worse than last years defense. The fact is SC’s defense ended up 70th in the nation while UCLA’s (with far less talent) ended up 40th. And UCLA didn’t play a bunch of cupcakes.They played Indiana, LSU, Oregon, Penn State, Minnesota, Iowa, Washington and SC. I think their defensive coaching staff did a better job that we did….again, with far less talent.
If you aren’t really pleased with the job our defensive staff did this year, then you obviously know nothing about football. ucla’s DC and staff did a nice job, but no one would any sane person trade that group for Lynn, Nua, Henderson, Belk, or Entz.
You are proving what is great about this board. Anyone with zero knowledge about college football can post their opinion.
People with untrained eyes are seeing Riley as the snake oil salesman that he is. The problem is so are impressionable minds in high school football programs. (who are trained) The days of going to a college because they heard the name broadcast on grandpa’s Motorola radio (or Zenith radio dial) are long gone. In this day and age a national program like USC has every play analyzed in every imaginable space. It is little wonder that highly touted football recruits want out of their commitment. I used to think it was the kids, but even if they didn’t see… Read more »
I think we are finding out quickly how much of a raw talent Jayden Miava is. And where the program is right now in needing a stable-dependable QB to give the offense, however spotty it is presently, a chance to hold its own in games. Does Riley have the time & patience to mold him sufficiently as the program struggles?
I have been pretty critical of the HC and his illogical approach to all facets of his job. I thought of a different angle over night. A term called “The Contract Curse”. An athlete/coach does exceptionally well in the last years of their current contract but see a drop in performance once they get a mega deal. Why? Most of us including myself have focused on diminished motivation and complacency. There is the other possibility, the pressure to live up to the high value of the contract leading to performance anxiety. That could explain a lot of his behavior and… Read more »
Ah, poor Lincoln. Let’s give him a nice little Trojan jacketed Teddy Bear for Xmas which will sing Fight On! to him when he winds it up. Maybe that will help his “performance anxiety” as you call it. We just have to make sure his Trojan Teddy is small enough to keep next to him on the sidelines when his playcalling gets confused and bizarre. Great Comedy Club Post GT. All in good fun, of course. 😂 😂 Sadly, quite a few of us feel at least a little sorry for Lincoln and the big hole he’s dug for himself… Read more »
Maybe a companion dog. It would be cheaper than a new coaching staff! 🐕
We’ll let Lincoln pick his dog. That’s the least we can do.
Could Carol Folt’s impending retirement affect a decision about LR’s continued employment? Specifically I’m wondering if it would be easier to cut ties while Carol Folt has lame duck status rather than deal with a new president in the future.
There is little doubt LR has the football program stuck in the mud after 3-years of questionable directions leading to any promises of rebuilding when the better linemen are leaving and no suitable replacement is ready to take their place. Looking at the state of the program right now, no one is even suggesting the football program will take a leap forward in both lines looking to execute sufficiently without again dipping into the Portal to find more needed help and thus depending on one year wonders to come in temporarily and having little to show for it in 2026.… Read more »
Let’s take a look at next year’s schedule.I’m leaving out the two first useless home games which must be wins or there will be a riot. Home to Iowa, Michigan, Mich State,Northwestern, UCLA. At Notre Dame, Illinois, Nebraska, Oregon, Purdue. I see 6 wins again maybe a 7th if everything goes right. Thank goodness we manage to miss Ohio State again. What will the excuses be next year? We keep losing commits, the two “best” O linemen are off to the NFL along with Woody. How badly do we get hammered in the portal with players being frustrated and decide… Read more »
I don’t know why ND is getting so much praise for beating SC. There are 35 teams in the AP poll that received votes. SC isn’t one of them. Yet, I thought SC outshined ND in that game everywhere but on the scoreboard, so what’s the big deal? ND beat Army. They received 182 votes on the AP poll.Nobody thought much of that. So, again, what’s the big deal.
ND ran for 258 yds on us, basically at will. That’s an incredible ground attack which usually both controls and wins games. Their OL totally abused us. If it wasn’t their running backs, it was their keenly deft QB Riley Leonard who often slithered through the USC D like butter. Then with the game on the line in the friendly Coliseum within easy reach of any good team, Jayden Maiava throws two absolutely horrible passes which two different ND DBs return 100 yds untouched down the sidelines while USC players appear stuck to the ground far away watching ND gleefully… Read more »
SC gained 240 yards in the 4th quarter while ND gained 5. Our offense outscored their offense 14-0 in the 4th quarter. But like I said…..that’s our identity……play hard and find some miraculous way to snatch defeat from the hands victory in the fourth quarter
It’s great to hear your perspective and a strong, well-expressed example to me of how totally differently we all see games on occasion.
USC got greased and run over as predicted by a better team and in the opinion of myself and several old USC friends I watched the game with.
In the end, I couldn’t care less about any stats anyway. For me, it’s all about scoreboard and USC lost again to ND as usual, and by a large margin as well.
I’d also take Marcus Freeman as our coach any day of the week over Lincoln Riley.
Oh, I’d love to have Marcus Freeman. I’m not too confident that it’s going to happen but if it does, bring your whole staff with you. All I’m saying is that they do have an identity…..their identity is to miraculously find ways to lose games in the 4th quarter. It’s a mental thing. Championship teams have a mental attitude where they refuse to lose especially in close games. I haven’t seen that in these LR teams.
ND “was bigger, better, more athletic more confident, more balanced, more physical, more disciplined, and better coached”.True.
I infer from your statement that the USC football was and is lacking in all those qualities at present. And they do.
After three seasons, when does Coach Riley show some progress in addressing those obvious shortcomings weakness?
Thus far he has done little as the coach in insuring his team exemplifies those winning qualities on the playing field.
USC is currently at one of the lowest points in its storied football history after so many years of utter mediocrity. At least that’s the way it seems to be to me. JMHO. I have no idea when Lincoln Riley expects USC to turn it around. Are USC’s prospects any better for the 2025 season? If so, I can’t with any honesty say why. We’re losing some of our better players for sure, recruiting is meh, big coaching issues exist, Trojan fan morale is low, and it seems like we need a lot of help through the always-challenging Portal, which… Read more »
SC should have won the ND game. They lost by 2 TD’s and they gave ND 2 TD’s on pick sixes. The game would have been tied and went into overtime. But don’t forget……on both pick sixes they were driving and would have had more points. That would have given them the victory. The football pundants are all asking what is the Trojans identity? That is their identity. Their identity is to be in the game and have victory in their reach and then find a way to lose the game. That is their identity.
I kind of see USC going the way of Nebraska football. Does anyone remember when Nebraska was relevant? I remember Nebraska was a contender every season. I had a friend who was a.big Nebraska fan, he’d always claim they were better than USC. But then they went through a series of poor coaching choices until they are a has been program. USC is one season away from becoming a has been program and it’s hard to watch.
Pete Carroll always chose to defer to the second half if he won the opening toss.
LIVE and DIE by the LONG BALL: Some baseball teams opt for aggressive swinging, thus hitting more home runs, but also more strike outs. Likewise, some football coaches like “Long Ball Riley” choose the less reliable long ball over the foundational “dink and dunk”.
100% Pass pass pass
Where is USC football headed under Lincoln Riley? The road forward is hazy… Antonio Morales (The Athletic) — USC has no central identity that it can build around, and it shows. That’s a major issue when it’s Year 3 for Lincoln Riley. USC, as it so often has this season, made a critical error yesterday in the worst possible moment. Make no mistake, Notre Dame (11-1) was clearly the better team on Saturday. The Trojans were good enough to compete and make it close. Not good enough when it mattered though, and that’s ultimately the story of USC’s season. The… Read more »
A year ago USC made wholesale changes to the defensive staff. Now it is time to do the same to the offensive staff. SLR is trying to be the Jack Of All Trades on offense and is the Master of None. His game plans are writing checks his players can’t cash. USC has an offensive coordinator, assistant head coach for offense, offensive passing game coordinator, run game coordinator. Henson’s resume is vanilla for an OL coach let alone OC. They need an OC that is in charge of the offense. They need an OL coach that has played and coached… Read more »
A lot is going to be said after the bowl game and it’s going to be very critical. So just two things now: If the 2025 season winds up similar or worse, I think Jen Cohend is going to be screamed at to do something by the fanbase. And, Lincoln Riley needs to seriously look at himself in the mirror and realize too many issues have held the program back from where it should be today and it’s all from his decisions.
Ya, Jen Cohen got off easy this season because she didn’t even take the USC AD job until late August 2023, before LR did a complete USC football faceplant the last two seasons.
2025 will put Cohen on the proverbial hot seat if LR continues to stumble into Trojan gridiron oblivion.
How she manipulates things to fix USC’s everlasting football problems if that occurs is anyone’s guess.
Maybe USC will install a GM, that could be good for Riley, the GM can show him the error of his ways. Just make sure the GM knows what he is talking about.
How about PC.
I would jump at anything if it involved PC & USC football.
The offense looked great against ND. 560 yards against one of the best defenses in the country? I’d say that’s pretty good. Only 4 teams all year gained over 300 yards on them…..the highest being Louisville with 395. Unfortunately, too little too late. I still support LR. Might as well. He’s going to be there for awhile unless he decides to cut and run.
You never know, He might just decide to move on like Chip Kelly did.
Maybe I’m just dreaming
Remember, Chip bailed out of ucla, can ya blame him.
From Athlon:
With Week 14 completed, Athlon Sports projects the CFP field for 2024:
College Football Playoff 12-Team Preseason Projections for 2024The Projected Field for 2024-25
1. Oregon (Projected Big Ten Champion)
2. Texas (Projected SEC Champion)
3. SMU (Projected ACC Champion)
4. Boise State (Projected MW Champion)
5. Penn State
6. Notre Dame
7. Georgia
8. Ohio State
9. Tennessee
10. Indiana
11. Alabama
12. Arizona State (Projected Big 12 Champion)
5* WR Jerome Myles decommits from USC. TAMU likely school. Kind of weird since USC just flipped Hasan from TAMU.
Now use the NIL $$$ on the linemen.
Wearesc predicts USC signs Christian Ingram,3* and Jakeem Stewart 5*, both DL and big.
All of the 4 and 5* DL are de commits. They have 2 4* OT on the commit list which good. The question is developing them!
Guys are flipping all over the place. Check out the headlines. Looks like a pancake breakfast out there!
The money is flying all over the place, we all know there are last minute offers coming in like crazy. The wild wild west for sure.
Column: USC coach Lincoln Riley has imprisoned the hopeless Trojans in a cycle of non-contender mediocrity Dylan Hernandez (2002 UCLA grad, LA Times) — This season is officially worse than the last, USC completing its regular season with a 6-6 record and probably destined for a minor bowl in a desert wasteland. Remember how an 8-5 season last year felt as if it was rock bottom? Well, things have unraveled at USC to the point where the infamous Clay Helton era, in retrospect, is starting to look half-decent. Following a 49-35 defeat to No. 5 Notre Dame at the Coliseum on Saturday, Lincoln Riley has a 25-14… Read more »
Good observations. I have felt down since Miller Moss played his heart out behind a lousy OL, yet had to be benched. Hopeless is a pretty good description of my depression about our program.
I see your sarcasm and what is USC’s run game ranked?! You will not survive in the Big-10 with Pass Pass Pass. Running the ball first open’s up bigger plays for WR because they have to respect the run. Also what’s USC’s offensive line ranked?!
So that unfortunately went the way I expected. ND’s #11 ranked run game pounded the ball mercilessly. SLR couldn’t help himself. Told his ragged inaccurate QB to pass 65% of the time against the #1 pass defense. Pass, pass, pass till the Pick 6s did them in. 6-7 is a real possibility, especially if it’s the Sun Bowl, players will opt out or transfer, those that are left to play will not be too thrilled with El Paso in December. They might get up for Vegas. Now what comes next. SLR is too expensive to fire unless they work a… Read more »
Yeh I mean you are not creating a desire to come to USC through attitude and culture. So bye not paying full NIL money too players your making it even worse to try and build a program.
NIL point. If SC was actually building a culture and desire for recruits to come to the program I would feel completely different about NIL, but LR is not that type of coach so that makes the NIL part stick out even more. Just saying
Agree. NIL is not gonna go into any type of overdrive until there’s a semblance of visible fundamentals to build a national powerhouse.
I think Riley is okay with NIL, but really dislikes the pay to play. I do too.
Football Contest Results Week 14
One week left – Championship Week
Full Game Accounting – Click Post link below
https://trojandailyblog.com/tdb-football-contest-2024-week-14/
Entz runs the program and Riley is the figurehead HC and OC.
How does that upgrade the coaching staff?
Riley is bottoming out USC football. He’s got several years before he can be bought out. We are in crisis mode so something out of the box is necessary. Not just us bitching. It puts a two time national champion head coach in charge of the program before USC becomes a forgotten memory. Entz will stabilize.
Remember Entz is on the short list for the Fresno HC job.
I think Entz would jump at the chance.
Maybe forces Riley to leave.
It would move the needle
The McCaskey’s will never hire LR as HC. They will simply appoint an interim HC to fill in for Eberfus. A permanent hire will follow. They still own 80 per cent shares of the Chicago Bears. They retained and grew that wealth by not overpaying for retread HC’s. No way will they buy any portion of USC’s “desperation” contract with LR. If USC wants LR gone, we’re going to have to pay him fair market value to buy him out. Those Rhodes Scholars Folt and Bohn sold this colossal, illusory contract to the BOT. Now both are gone and we… Read more »
I 100% think a new coach is warranted, however SC cannot afford to make a backwards move for a new coach. LR has an 80 mil contract. So if you get rid of him too early that means you are settling for someone less than LR most likely. Whether we like it or not LR gets recruits because of his name, it’s just not the right recruits. Therefore you need to replace a name with a name Defensively. We will loose recruits and be worse if that is not how you replace LR, and too me going to old school… Read more »
I wonder if they were to buy Riley out, what would happen to the great D staff? They would probably go to.
Who knows, but he is only going into year 4. He had to move conferences. I don’t really like anything I’ve seen from him yet. I don’t think SC will fire him yet. I think SC has a problem with hiring the right guy for there needs and they rush decisions and then you end up with a coaching carousel and wonder why you can’t build a program. Gotta hire based on the needs and direction of the team, and program first and foremost, and then you need to trust the process. For 5 or more years.
Where were you when they hired him? I think most of us were over the top excited. But then we have to remember what we had before. I have resigned myself to the fact he is going to remain, and in that I have decided to try to be positive, at least as much as I can.
The reason I was never sold on Riley is because he didn’t fit the bill of need. And that’s why SC is in a coaching carousel. Because of rushed decisions and need. We got Caleb Williams who cares. You wasted his whole career at SC because you don’t recruit in the trenches. How many Heisman Trophy QB’s have we had. That’s not what wins championships. SC gets the best QB’s and WR’s automatically. The Problem is culture, attitude, accountability, and mental toughness. You need to return old school mentality to this program especially if we are going to survive in… Read more »
We can’t keep Riley for 5 years. The program will be destroyed for 5-10 years
at that point. We will have about as much football glory as the University of Chicago has today.
What is there not to complain about LR and SC. Red Zone issues lol. Well Marks is stud RB. You don’t score in the Red Zone because you don’t recruit offensive lineman for one, and number 2 you think you can just blow people out and win games with passing. You’re not going to win championships or a lot of games when the defense knows you’re just going to pass the ball all day long. Bigger plays and points come to WR’s and your team running first and softening up the defense. Also did Maiava have 6 TD’ s in… Read more »
Typical LR post game gibberish. His quotes are Billy Barty like, written with a broken crayon.
Lincoln Riley’s weak post-ND loss “coachspeak” for our “untrained eyes” only —
Riley — “I could sit up here for an hour and talk about the things that I know are happening within this program. I could rattle off all the stats. I could show you the facilities. I could show you recruiting. I can show you the staff. I could go on about that for an hour. I just don’t think it’s the appropriate time right now.”
Connor Morrissette/247sports.com
At least he didn’t bring up “warriors” and love.
Stat rattling is a path he really doesn’t want to go down. He’ll get crucified.
I agree with the size disparity. The moment ND came out of that tunnel to our boos, then lined up for their first offensive snap, it was jaw dropping. I’m proud of our kids who were able to pull it together and make as many stops as they did. LR by focus and reputation has never been a trench position guy nor defensive guy. Didn’t have to. At OU the fan distraction was his productive qb’s and playoff appearances coming from the B12. The B1G is a power conference that’s night and day from the former B12 and PAC12. The… Read more »
I just saw that SC had another 4-star OT decomit who is going to Colorado (Hayes Fawcett). Is this old news or do the hits just keep on coming?
Wouldn’t doubt it already lost some big 4 star DL too. Wasted talent of Marks not recruiting O-lineman, but hey I’ll replace the RB coach it’s his fault. You should have hired the best offensive line coach you can that can help with recruits and start developing lineman!!!
He is not listed in 2024 or 2025 offers anywhere. Old news I think. Monday Faraimo announces, he was at USC yesterday.
I hope we get him……but he was probably watching Notre Dame more than USC.
Its an official visit and he is still there today.
You’re probably reading about Carde Smith. Let us hope it is not another. Dunn and Payne are still showing with us…..and as you know, we need them very badly.
This old Trojan is 100% in favor of keeping D Coach Lynn. But what chaps my ass is the continual disparity in size between our defensive players and Notre Dame, for example. Lynn needs to take that 15 hour flight down to Tonga. There are numerous high schools, usually affiliated with churches. The average high school Tongan defensive lineman exceeds 325 pounds. The last USC coach who recruited there was Pete Carroll. The behemoth O lineman he came back with opened car sized holes for RB. Or, LR can spin another fiction about how many pounds his team put on… Read more »
After rewatching the game…..I am more convinced than ever that a new coach is warranted.
Unfortunately, I suspect the powers that be will force the program to waste another year being mismanaged.
He is deficient in so many areas it is amazing that he still has his job.
Just one point that has been made many times…..our special teams continue to be horrible. Why we don’t have a coach…nobody knows……well……we know……Riley wanted the money for himself.
You make an excellent point. Riley was shown up by the fighting Irish special teams in ways which boggled the mind. The fake punt is a great example. The Trojan eleven on the field looked around in disbelief as if they didn’t know if what was happening in front of them was even legal. Every kickoff from the leprechauns dropped before the goal line, not because their kicker is weak, but because their pursuit team is better than our blocking. The glaring lack of special teams coaching was exposed several times by the Irish. When ND finally punted I watched… Read more »
You can say what you want about LR. You might think that he is terrrible. You might think that he’s better than average but not great.You might think that he is an up and coming coach who is growing towards greatness. But one thing is for sure…..this guy is not worth $100 million.
You might think that they (as a team) have this strength or that strength but there number one strength is their ability to snatch defeat from the hands of victory. They’re really good at that.
A lot of things that Riley gets blamed for is correct. One thing I always wonder about is had the players executed correctly would the result still be the same? Riley doesn’t throw, block, or tackle. He doesn’t drop passes, miss kicks, or get caught out of position. What Riley gets paid is irrelevant to me, it isn’t my money. But then I wish I was a college coach making the type of money they do these days. I do not believe Riley is going anywhere soon, and perhaps with some additions to the team, that execution will get better.… Read more »
I would think that this is the HC’s job…..to get and then put on the field players who do block, tackle, catch passes and make kicks.
I didn’t watch the game but checked up from time-to-time on my ESPN app. My health just can’t handle a lot of stress and watching live stresses me out. Couldn’t sleep very well, so I watched the highlights on U-Tube early Sunday morning. USC gave up too many rushing yards to ND. I do believe the defense has improved under Lynn, but it still has a way to go. It will be interesting to see what bowl game SC ends up in.
A picture going all the way to the Kiffin era. I can’t resist the similarity in play calling.
Back in August who would have thought SMU, Indiana, and Army would have such a good shot at playing in the CFP. The portal has helped bring some parity to college ball and then look at Vanderbilt.
The waiting game is about to spin. Will Jen have the huevos she needs to exorcise our demons? Just after early signing is complete she should summon the staff to her office and either fire or demote Riley. He has the team on probation so, she has cause. We have a coach on staff that was a successful head coach in a lower division. In theory he could be interim for the bowl game. The one thing I do know is Riley has proven himself incapable of turning anything other than a phrase around and I doubt he won’t learn… Read more »
That’s another game SC could have won(even should have won). Look at the box score. SC dominated the categories.Take away the 2 pick sixes and it’s a 35-35 tie but consider that on both of those picks SC was driving towards another TD. Never have I ever seen a team that could find a way to snatch defeat from the hands of victory like this team.
Execution.
Are you suggesting execution for Riley? Let me think about that…🤔. Nah, I guess that is going too far🤣
Remember when McKay suggested his players deserved “execution” when the word was tossed around in a performance context by an NFL reporter and McKay blurted out, “I’m all for it.”, or something to that effect when he was coaching Tampa Bay.
I don’t think Lincoln Riley is even capable of generating a laugh from the press or fans. He generates simple skepticism at best nowadays.
While improved from last year, Notre Dane’s run game resembled Patton’s 3rd Army dash across the Ruhr Valley. USC defense is simply TOO small!
Lynn did what he could … well timed blitz and whiffs ND backs bigger than SC linebackers no name front 4 all smaller than ND tight ends
3rd team CBs and Shaw still playing
D got them ball back when had to Lynn is a keeper
But will Lynn be back next year?
That has been asked before and I think he will, for one thing he has just recruited his first class, he loves working with the guys around him, the money is good, he really likes LR, and if I remember right he committed to USC for 2 or 3 years.
Now his staff may not all stay. Entz is being considered for the Fresno HC job.
wife loves SoCal too … guess is Lynn had been told if LR thing doesn’t work out you are new HC
Get a solid NFL type OC and Lynn would be big time
Oh so close one play away Coach Lincoln Riley came to USC to change the culture and has whiffed on every aspect except one. The one he’s getting right is defense. The rest of his game plan is the same as all of the other inexperienced head coaches after Pete Carroll. Look up the three most recent coaches USC has let go and you’ll find winners at every stop Georgia Southern has a winning record. Ole Miss has a winning record and everyone knows about Texas. What stands out about this is the way all three of these coaches went… Read more »
Ya ditch the overrated big talking OC and get a DC in here to change to tough ball
This job was too big for them and now LR
Gomer is where he belongs Georgia St or whatever
Kiffy schedules garbage and with 6 year qb and vet team failed .. again
Suck saved by Texas $$$$ and still just slipping by except vs only good team he played
Heartbreaking loss today (again) . The 99 yard pick six basically cleared out the Coli. Thankful for the great fan atmosphere as the team played their hearts out. I know this was only his third game and I do think he is an upgrade over Miller, but Maiva is not the guy as in my opinion, he doesn’t have the “it” factor. I know he’s young but he seems to robotic and unemotional and lacks field leadership qualities. ✌️
That call 4 minutes left … 1st down SC rolling, chance to tie score, run clock, rest D, shorten game all at once. Joyner unstoppable, LR calls complete dumb ass call again.
Like he did all season long. Does not know how to manage a game.
Agreed. Neither Maiava nor Moss are great QB’s. They are better than average but not great. That’s part of the problem with the offense. You need an outstanding QB. Maiava is robotic. I don’t think he will ever play at the pro level. He doesn’t have a quick release. He winds up like a baseball pitcher. That gives early warning to those quick cornerbacks in the pros as to what you are going to do. Also, those receivers don’t get separation. Lane and Robinson get catches because they can go up higher but it doesn’t seem like they are ever… Read more »
Good points all, 007.
Riley is tunnel-vision focused on QBs. The NFL is a QB league—that’s where Riley should go. Make life miserable for this punk kid until he accepts a reasonable buy-out.
I do have to agree with Riley somewhat, not completely, that some of the problems are from execution or lack of. Other times it is what was called to begin with. For some reason the defense looks okay for the talent they have. One real dominant D lineman will lift the entire defense. I can see guys have improved, especially tackling.
Tonight the running game looked good after Woody went down.
Now, one question becomes:
Who will opt out of the bowl game?
LR we hope .. Bears job looks good
As I said yesterday, “take our Riley, please.”
It was a long drive home, but you know what? The kids played their hearts out, got punched in the mouth with ND’s punishing running game, and as they’ve done the entire season, punched back. As AW indicated, the Coliseum was PC days loud and raucous. The Penn St game was close. So….. the elephant in the room is our coach. There’s quite a few areas to improve, but most wonder if he agrees. If he nods yes, will he actually do something without internal and external pressure ? He’s young, very young, no experience with rebuilding, only experience with… Read more »
Long ball Riley: 4th and 3, only down by 7= get the FIRST down with a high percentage short pass; don’t go for the low percentage long ball. Riley is not going to change his “chancy” play calls, so you have to change him.
Long wheel routes to slow tight end on 3rd … another on 4th and 3 after big pick
vs a D that couldn’t cover 3 step throws or stop the run
Our skill players are fine. Until we beef and skill up both trenches, this is what we’ll be indefinitely. No revelation, I know, we’ve been saying this for 3 years, but unless LR actually does something about it, we’ll still be saying it in another 3 years.
Perhaps he will be bringing in some new OL and DL with this 2025 class. There are other guys at USC coming up also. The portal hopefully will get us a couple on both sides. Then we have to worry about the guys leaving, except for Mason, we won’t miss him.