Tuli Tuipulotu, USC defense lead Trojans over stubborn Washington State
Adam Grosbard (OC Register) — LOS ANGELES — The USC defense started Saturday’s game against Washington State short-handed, with captain linebacker Shane Lee on the sidelines in a cast. Further strain was put on the Trojans when standout safety Calen Bullock was ejected for targeting in the second quarter.
But the sixth-ranked Trojans still had their best defender, Tuli Tuipulotu (49), on the field. And that was more than enough.
The defensive lineman’s three-sack performance, as well as gutsy play by the defense as a whole, helped carry USC to a 30-14 win over the Cougars as the Trojans improved to 6-0 for the first time since 2006.
“We’re going to appreciate it and also keep our sights forward,” head coach Lincoln Riley said.
The USC defense didn’t get the job done with turnovers, which has been the Trojans’ signature this season. Rather, the unit did its best work behind the line of scrimmage with six sacks and nine tackles for loss, 4.5 of which belonged to Tuipulotu.
It was clear from the second drive of the game, when Tuipulotu recorded sacks on first and third down to force a three-and-out, that the junior would be a force to be reckoned with in this game.
“I’m just glad to be winning,” Tuipulotu said. “That’s all I care about is winning. I’ll do whatever the team wants me to do so we can’t get the job done.”
Tuipulotu has been the consummate pro for USC, playing much of the first five games at defensive tackle to make up for depth issues at the position. But there he usually occupies blockers to free up teammates rather than make the big play himself.
Despite that, he still led USC with four sacks entering the night.
But the return of tackle Tyrone Taleni has allowed Tuipulotu to slide back out to end, where he is much more likely to get a one-on-one matchup. And when that’s the case, there’s little most offensive tackles can do to combat his combination of strength and quickness.
This was evident on his third-and-three sack in the final minute of the second quarter, when he blew past the left tackle and got to Washington State quarterback Cameron Ward before he knew what hit him.
“Tuli’s a tough matchup and our ability to move him around is a great tool,” Riley said. “It’s been good to get those guys back. It not only allows us to move him around but it allows us to keep fresh bodies and continually run them. As aggressive as we play on the defensive front, having fresh bodies is key.”
It wasn’t just Tuipulotu, either. Nick Figueroa had two sacks, and Taleni added one. Ralen Goforth led USC with eight tackles in place of Lee. And Washington State’s 172 passing yards were 117 below the Cougars’ season average.
It was big on a night when the USC offense had as many touchdowns — three — as Denis Lynch field goals.
USC utilized quick passes and short routes to combat Washington State’s notorious pass rush. All six first-quarter pass attempts went to Jordan Addison and Mario Williams, the fastest receivers on the roster.
But the Trojans weren’t afraid to let it rip when necessary. On third-and-16 in the first quarter, quarterback Caleb Williams wanted it all. Rolling to his right, he let a heave go to a wide open Mario Williams (4) at the goal line. The receiver turned and held the ball out over the pylon to complete the 37-yard touchdown play.
But USC’s offense was not as consistent as it usually is. After a field-goal drive, the Trojans went three-and-out on four of their next six possessions.
The Trojans did manage a go-ahead touchdown in that stretch, but only after two Washington State penalties on third down in the red zone gave USC new life.
It was penalties that got USC’s offense back on track in the second half, too. A defensive holding eliminated a Williams interception, and an unsportsmanlike penalty against Washington State (4-2, 1-2 in Pac-12) moved USC to the WSU 22.
An offensive holding penalty erased what would have been Travis Dye’s (26) second touchdown run of the day, but the next play Washington State jumped offsides. Williams took advantage of the free play by finding Mario Williams sliding in the end zone for a touchdown and a 10-point lead.
Caleb Williams (13) finished 15-for-29 for 188 yards while Dye carried the offense with 28 rushes and 149 yards.
But even a shaky night was alright with the way the short-handed defense played.
“A lot of guys had to step up in different ways,” Riley said. “Just continually found a way.”
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TENN, which plays #3 ALA on Saturday, just jumped USC in the AP poll, taking the #6 spot and pushing the Trojans to #7. But all is definitely not well with the Vols who look like they just lost their 4-year starting safety, 21-year-old Jaylen McCollough, who was charged with felony aggravated assault after he knocked another man backward down some stairs and unconscious with some missing and broken teeth in an altercation on Sunday. McCollough had seven total tackles in TENN’s big 40-13 win over LSU on Saturday. He has 23 tackles so far this season, the fourth-most on… Read more »
Where is McCollough’s kilt? When I watch that documentary “Braveheart,” everybody who had a name like “McCollough” wore a kilt and carried a big sword or an axe….
“Marietta (Ga.) Wheeler four-star power forward Arrinten Page (6-9, 225) has committed to USC.
“Page is the No. 71 overall recruit in the 2023 cycle, according to the On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.
“Page is the second player to commit to the Trojans over the last few days after Lincolnton (N.C.) Combine Academy four-star recruit Silas Demary Jr. Demary committed on Oct 7 and was the first verbal in the 2023 Trojans class…”
Crybaby Kyle Whittingham on NIL and USC Josh Newman (Salt Lake Tribune) OPENING STATEMENT FROM KYLE WHITTINGHAM “Pay them a bunch of money, do you have money we can use to pay them? That’s kind of what it comes down to, that’s what it’s coming to. I’m not accusing anyone of illegal improprieties or anything like that because it’s above board now with NIL, but as I said before, there’s going to come a time in the very, very near future where the top 25 NIL pots of money are going to mirror exactly the top-25 teams in the country.… Read more »
It makes you wonder why would he bring that up at this particular time. He is a good coach, no question, and gets an awful lot out of what he has to work with. But whining about NIL this week seems kind of pointed at USC for some reason.
You have to ask, if he had the money would he be going NIL also?
Good, solid coach; no way a great coach IMO, and I think his overall record supports that conclusion. He’s trying to paint his team as victims of the NIL world. That would and will fire up some Ute followers I suppose, maybe even some players. But to me, it just means Whittingham is setting up excuses for his already 2-loss team, which has been a big disappointment so far. He’s publicly complaining about dealing from a position of weakness. White flag stuff if you ask me. Oh, UTAH will be very tough on Saturday. USC might lose. But long term,… Read more »
You hint at the crux of the matter, which is, what have you done all those years before NIL? The answer is, you were still looking up at the top tier programs, so don’t blame the future for your failures of the past.
Hey, I usually admire Whittingham, like most. But I never wanted him to coach USC, like some. Not good enough IMO to fix what was ailing USC for all these post-Pete Carroll years. He’s 90-52 (.633) while in the Pac-12 since 2011 and hasn’t won a major bowl since his team was in the Mountain West in 2008. His team is already having a bad year and one more loss and 2022 is kaput for the Utes. Whittingham’s probably not feeling too good after Choc Chip Kelly and the surprise Bruins fleeced him. Hopefully, USC does exactly the same thing… Read more »
If he had the money he would use it for NIL, I don’t think that there is a single coach out there that would not use the money for NIL.
In regard to the second part of your comment, the timing of his statement is certainly questionable.
You can fix that by putting together NIL deals. Call any non BYU fat cats to put the money on the line and go get players just like every body else who wants to relevant in college sports.
I disagree with you. He is not being a cry baby. There are schools that will be able to collect higher amounts of money to be used for NIL and the college kids are going to gravitate to those schools. Utah is not a school that has the resources to get as much NIL money as other schools. I think what he says is fair and true. Schools like his are going to have to find prospects that do not have the name recognition to get a NIL deal and then develop them into players who can then get a… Read more »
He can publicly whine about it, like a crybaby (in my eyes), or get to work and do something about it, like a lot of other coaches will and have already. Whittingham’s statement smacks of helplessness and self-pity, which is a very poor signal to send to your players, asst coaches, recruiting staff, recruits themselves, and fans. The truth is, coaching is still massively important, and always will be. Unless coaches like Jimbo Fisher and disaster-in-waiting Brent Venables get their acts together (among others), it won’t matter how much NIL money comes flooding into their gates. And some coaches at… Read more »
Tuipulotu Dominates! LOS ANGELES—USC JR DL Tuli Tuipulotu was named the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week and the Pac-12 Defensive Lineman of the Week for his performance in USC’s 30-14 win over WSU. This was the fifth consecutive game in which Tuipulotu had at least 1 TFL. On the season, he has 21 tackles with 12.5 for loss of 61 yds and 7 sacks for minus 49 yds. He has also collected 2 PBUs, 1 forced fumble and a QBH. This is Tuipulotu’s first Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week honor and his second time being named Pac-12 Defensive Lineman of… Read more »
I really had no idea how good Tuli was. He was only a 3-star DL with primarily west coast offers out of Hawthorne Lawndale, not exactly a power from what I know. Having to play under Clay Helton was never going to bring out his talent like a coach such as Lincoln Riley could. He’s amazing, no?
Ya, I’m afraid Tuli will be a goner, hopefully in R1. But he’s sure going out in style. What a season he is having. The way LR is moving him around is masterful. Such quickness!
This could be the week Riley opens up the entire playbook and lets it all out. Defense is better each game so we get the points up there on the board it could be a big USC win.
The Pac12 refs will be with us again in Utah. I am afraid we are going to have the same type of pass defense played against us and they will miss an many interference calls as they did the last two games. Perhaps our defenders need to watch the film and start playing the same way, if they are not already. Will USC catch a break? Not in our lifetime. I wonder if LR has lodged complaints with the Pac12 about what these other teams are getting away with.
I haven’t watched a replay of the game yet and sitting in the end zone makes seeing the whole play tough. But I will bet the blatant uncalled pass interference I saw in the first quarter will look the same. I saw coach Riley go out to talk to the refs on the field Saturday, I wonder what was said. I have heard that officiating in the PAC 12 is the worst in D1 football but I really don’t have a measurement to go by. I just know WSU’s defense was all over our receivers and the ref couldn’t keep… Read more »
The targeting penalty situation/interpretation really seems to work improperly sometimes IMO. I’m all for safety to the max, but some of these penalties that get kids kicked out of games are hard to support, even though the letter of the law is technically being followed, at least per the refs. And the amount of time it takes to make some of these calls is ridiculous. Tricky stuff which has changed the game.
Say Rialto, from your view could you see if Caleb Williams was missing open receivers and throwing into tight coverage instead? Is he trying to make the big play too much or just trying to draw the PI call that the refs wouldn’t give?
From my angle his pass was catchable up to the point of blatant interference. Twice the receiver was in the grasp of the defender when the ball was thrown. The ball landed where the receiver would have been if he hadn’t been pulled down. The same ref threw a flag on USC when there was barely touching by our defender. The flag was waived off because the pass was thrown out of bounds. A couple of Caleb’s passes were low and one was batted down.
I’ve got to believe Caleb is in a funk reading the defenses or something. Here you have all this firepower and he stands back in the pocket until being flushed out and his passes aren’t as accurate as the beginning games.This shouldn’t happen as often as we’ve seen it these last few games. Of course LR’s recent game plans could be about holding onto the ball longer while on offense and giving the defense more rest on the sidelines? I watching some of the UCLA-Utah game and it didn’t surprise me a whole lot Utah lost that game. Both their… Read more »
UCLA saved itself from massive humiliation and degradation when they came from behind to beat South Alabama 32-31, because the Jaguar coach gave the game away at the Rose Bowl. UCLA has been a hot team ever since and their offense, both in the air and on the ground, looks very dangerous to me based on what I’ve seen in the last three games. UTAH always seemed like they were kind of hanging on against the Bruins in the Rose Bowl. The Bruins basically ran the Utes off the field. It’s pretty telling that USC is 6-0 with all of… Read more »
USC has not been firing on all cylinders last 3 games but still find a way to win. I wonder if CW is pressing, trying to do Heisman worthy plays every time. On TV it is often hard to tell who is open unless there is a replay. But there have been some plays where a guy is wide open but CW tries to thread the needle somewhere else. LR needs to get him fixed. I wish the bye was this week not next. We will need a full team effort in SLC.
It sure would be nice to see Caleb get back on track with his passing game. As you say, he’s missing open guys, and missing open throws too. I also don’t quite understand why sometimes he likes to run out of bounds and lose yardage instead of throwing it out of bounds when outside the pocket for no loss. But it seems flat-out strange for me to complain about a guy who is so responsible for USC’s success. This is a complicated team. More will be revealed, as they say. In the meantime, thank goodness for Travis Dye and Tuli… Read more »
To quote the (not so) great Scott Wolf, “Does anyone even mention UCLA has played one road game? And it was in Boulder! Did everyone forget those nonconference games?”
I think Wolf makes an interesting point: Ucla can’t win in front of a large crowd. The problem with Wolf’s blog is the unregulated trolls who chase real Trojans off. There are people there who post using other posters names and always finish with some Jr. porn star talk. There are no rules on that blog except THERE ARE NO RULES.
UCLA plays in the Pac-12 and plays 2/3 of its games in a stadium no one wants to go to. They don’t have to play in front of large crowds. SC will probably lead the conference in home attendance this year with an [announced] average of 60-65,000. That’s less than the elite SEC and B1G teams draw for their spring games.
But build a consistent winner and even the beach bums will come. Pete Carroll proved that. It only took 3 years to sell out the Coliseum for a game against Colorado State.
Also, have you noticed that while the SEC and B1G schools are constantly expanding their stadiums’ capacity the trend among Pac-12 schools is to downsize? UCLA, SC, Arizona State, Stanford, Oregon State, Cal all come to mind.
First Saturday of October football in the bag. I think UCLA might be legit. Tennessee is, although this season’s LSU is fraudulent so that was a fraud-stomping. You guys get a hard fought win. Need those kind of wins when the O just isn’t right or opponent’s D is for real. Feel good about my Buckeyes and this Saturday bye comes at a good time.
USC @ UT. PSU @ ttun. Bama @ UT.
Big weekend coming up.
Have to admit. This is the first season in years that I’ve watched a PAC 12 game. Watched/glimpsed both USC & UCLA because B1G and good teams and games.
Doing a little scouting, are you? Your Bucks are definitely in the top 3, maybe 1st, but your ND win was devalued a bit. Your PSU game will tell us more, and of course your game against that team up north. Solidly in the top 4 is really all you need to be, and you’re there without a doubt.
Wouldn’t say scouting, but paying attention for the first time in a while. Not sure how good PSU really is. Auburn is really bad, but the nits get a lot of credit for winning a game in the deep south. Michigan really hasn’t played anyone and bad Iowa and Indiana have both played close for 3 quarters. I like @Tennessee to beat Bama for the first time in 15 years, but I think only if Young doesn’t play. Also UT’s OT went out with an injury v LSU. He needs to be back for the Vols. Something still isn’t right… Read more »
USC is a GREAT team…. Not yet elite like OSU or couple others, but a ‘great team’ that loves playing together and wins. they take challenges head on and respond. Special teams was a disaster waiting to happen. Coach challenged them, they responded. D line has responded, whole D has responded.. Players trust each other and they trust the coaches that lead them….When was the last time USC football was in this state? well probably when these players were 5 or 6 old. Bravo USC Football !
“In the East Coast prime-time slot, Lincoln Riley’s sixth-ranked Trojans were challenged once again, this time by a capable Washington State team, but ran off 20 unanswered points to win comfortably 30-14.
“People who nitpick USC are showing their true colors at this point — they’re either self-loathing Trojans or folks whose faces turn cardinal at the thought of USC winning…”
It’s football … it’s a grind, a hard grind. A 16 pt win over a tough Wazzu team that won a opener at Wisconsin before Whisky knew it sucked, is a keeper.
It is amazing that it is the defense holding the team together. The defense in the second halfs makes adjustments and delivers. No 26 carried the Trojan offense on his shoulders with 150 yards rushing. The passing game seems to be boom or bust. But the talent is there to be great. Maybe Caleb should stop only looking for the big plays to Addison and Mario. Addison was double or tripled covered. But quick short to intermediate passes were there Against the really good teams have to take what the defense gives. Like to see some more fast developing plays… Read more »
1. Georgia
2. Ohio State
3. Alabama
4. Clemson
5. Michigan
6. Tennessee 7. USC
8. Oklahoma State
9. Ole Miss
10. Penn State 11. UCLA 12. Oregon
13. TCU
14. Wake Forest
15. North Carolina State
16. Mississippi State
17. Kansas State
18. Syracuse
19. Kansas 20. Utah
21. Cincinnati
22. Texas
23. Kentucky
24. Illinois
25. James Madison
UT jumping over USC in polls proves that the national media values any win over an SEC team higher than any win over a P12 team. Who says LSU is better than WASt? The AP, that’s who.
At least USC kept its #6 rank in the Coaches Poll, just like ALA stayed #1, ORE stayed ahead of UCLA, and ND was kept out of the top 25. Kiffin’s Rebels (Land Sharks) remain at #9. I like it.
POSTGAME QUOTES | USC USC vs. Washington State United Airlines Field at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | Los Angeles, Calif. Saturday, Oct. 8, 2022 HEAD COACH LINCOLN RILEY Opening Statement: “Really, really tough, hard-fought win. We had to win this one, again in a different way. We talked to the guys all week about how circumstances don’t make or break you whether they are positive or negative. They just reveal your training; they reveal what’s inside of a team, what’s inside of the person. It was fitting because the way the game played out, some key guys for us… Read more »
CBS Sports predictions for the AP Top 25 Alabama Crimson Tide (6-0) Georgia Bulldogs (6-0) Ohio State Buckeyes (6-0) Clemson Tigers (6-0) Michigan Wolverines (6-0) Tennessee Volunteers (5-0) USC Trojans (6-0) Oklahoma State Cowboys (5-0) Ole Miss Rebels (6-0) Penn State Nittany Lions (5-0) UCLA Bruins (6-0) TCU Horned Frogs (5-0) Oregon Ducks (5-1) NC State Wolfpack (5-1) Wake Forest Demon Deacons (5-1) Kansas State Wildcats (5-1) Syracuse Orange (5-0) Mississippi State Bulldogs (5-1) Kansas Jayhawks (5-1) Utah Utes (4-2) Cincinnati Bearcats (5-1) Notre Dame Fighting Irish (3-2) BYU Cougars (4-2) Baylor Bears (3-2) James Madison Dukes (5-0) CBS Sports has Notre Dame, Baylor and James Madison entering this week’s top 25. As a result, Kentucky (previously… Read more »
This pretty much sums it up: Antonio Morales (The Athletic) — “USC wasn’t at its best against Washington State. Caleb Williams and Jordan Addison, by their standards, had relatively quiet nights. But there was Tuli Tuipulotu, who dominated the Cougars with three sacks and four tackles for loss, and there was Travis Dye, who rushed for 149 yards and a touchdown, carrying the offense on a night the passing game wasn’t clicking. “The Trojans weren’t as electric as they’ve shown at certain points in its five prior games, but honestly, it didn’t matter. USC showed once again, it can win in… Read more »
Just one great disrupter like Tuli, Hufanga before him, and Aaron Donald, can sure make up for lack of enough talent across the defense. You can ride him all season. Hopefully he stays healthy the rest of the year
In my first return to the coliseum in what seems like forever I was a little out of my element. A delightful surprise was the entering procedure. I had to place all my pocket stuff (keys, phone, rocket launcher, etc.) into a clear plastic bag, but the guy at the gate picked it up and looked underneath it to make sure my grenades were only smoke grenades. Then my wife scanned her phone to get me through the turnstiles. ( I told her to hang on to that phone because I wanted to print the score on the back and… Read more »
Good morning from Frisco, TX. The first half of the season has played out as well as we could have hoped. We can now turn to the second half, which starts next week in SLC against the Utes, a team that is very difficult to beat at home and a team with its season on the line. If the Utes lose to the Trojans, they will effectively be removed from the Pac 12 championship game – for they will trail both SC and UCLA by three games (tie breaker) and Oregon by two. . If SC wins on Saturday, it… Read more »
I did not realize Shane Lee did not play last night. Makes the defensive performance better, considering we lost a player to the Karen rule (that’s what I consider the targeting infraction, folks).
But the sixth-ranked Trojans still had their best defender, Tuli Tuipulotu (49), on the field. And that was more than enough.
But the Trojans weren’t afraid to let it rip when necessary. On third-and-16 in the first quarter, quarterback Caleb Williams wanted it all. Rolling to his right, he let a heave go to a wide open Mario Williams (4) at the goal line. The receiver turned and held the ball out over the pylon to complete the 37-yard touchdown play.
An offensive holding penalty erased what would have been Travis Dye’s (26) second touchdown run of the day, but the next play Washington State jumped offsides. Williams took advantage of the free play by finding Mario Williams sliding in the end zone for a touchdown and a 10-point lead.
Caleb Williams (13) finished 15-for-29 for 188 yards while Dye carried the offense with 28 rushes and 149 yards.
TENN, which plays #3 ALA on Saturday, just jumped USC in the AP poll, taking the #6 spot and pushing the Trojans to #7. But all is definitely not well with the Vols who look like they just lost their 4-year starting safety, 21-year-old Jaylen McCollough, who was charged with felony aggravated assault after he knocked another man backward down some stairs and unconscious with some missing and broken teeth in an altercation on Sunday. McCollough had seven total tackles in TENN’s big 40-13 win over LSU on Saturday. He has 23 tackles so far this season, the fourth-most on… Read more »
Where is McCollough’s kilt? When I watch that documentary “Braveheart,” everybody who had a name like “McCollough” wore a kilt and carried a big sword or an axe….
USC lands commitment from 4-star PF Arrinten Page
“Marietta (Ga.) Wheeler four-star power forward Arrinten Page (6-9, 225) has committed to USC.
“Page is the No. 71 overall recruit in the 2023 cycle, according to the On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.
“Page is the second player to commit to the Trojans over the last few days after Lincolnton (N.C.) Combine Academy four-star recruit Silas Demary Jr. Demary committed on Oct 7 and was the first verbal in the 2023 Trojans class…”
Peter Warren (on3.com)
If Page can convince his team mate(Isaiah Collier) to join him, this will be a very special class. I am a believer in the direction of our BB Program.
5-star PG Isaiah Page (6-3, 190) has officially visited MICH, UCLA, USC, CIN and ALA. No predictions out there that I have seen.
Andy Enfield has turned out to be a very good fit for USC I would say.
Update: Page will announce his commitment Nov 16 and the Trojans are the favorite to land him per on3.com.
on3.com
Crybaby Kyle Whittingham on NIL and USC Josh Newman (Salt Lake Tribune) OPENING STATEMENT FROM KYLE WHITTINGHAM “Pay them a bunch of money, do you have money we can use to pay them? That’s kind of what it comes down to, that’s what it’s coming to. I’m not accusing anyone of illegal improprieties or anything like that because it’s above board now with NIL, but as I said before, there’s going to come a time in the very, very near future where the top 25 NIL pots of money are going to mirror exactly the top-25 teams in the country.… Read more »
It makes you wonder why would he bring that up at this particular time. He is a good coach, no question, and gets an awful lot out of what he has to work with. But whining about NIL this week seems kind of pointed at USC for some reason.
You have to ask, if he had the money would he be going NIL also?
Good, solid coach; no way a great coach IMO, and I think his overall record supports that conclusion. He’s trying to paint his team as victims of the NIL world. That would and will fire up some Ute followers I suppose, maybe even some players. But to me, it just means Whittingham is setting up excuses for his already 2-loss team, which has been a big disappointment so far. He’s publicly complaining about dealing from a position of weakness. White flag stuff if you ask me. Oh, UTAH will be very tough on Saturday. USC might lose. But long term,… Read more »
You hint at the crux of the matter, which is, what have you done all those years before NIL? The answer is, you were still looking up at the top tier programs, so don’t blame the future for your failures of the past.
Hey, I usually admire Whittingham, like most. But I never wanted him to coach USC, like some. Not good enough IMO to fix what was ailing USC for all these post-Pete Carroll years. He’s 90-52 (.633) while in the Pac-12 since 2011 and hasn’t won a major bowl since his team was in the Mountain West in 2008. His team is already having a bad year and one more loss and 2022 is kaput for the Utes. Whittingham’s probably not feeling too good after Choc Chip Kelly and the surprise Bruins fleeced him. Hopefully, USC does exactly the same thing… Read more »
If he had the money he would use it for NIL, I don’t think that there is a single coach out there that would not use the money for NIL.
In regard to the second part of your comment, the timing of his statement is certainly questionable.
You can fix that by putting together NIL deals. Call any non BYU fat cats to put the money on the line and go get players just like every body else who wants to relevant in college sports.
I disagree with you. He is not being a cry baby. There are schools that will be able to collect higher amounts of money to be used for NIL and the college kids are going to gravitate to those schools. Utah is not a school that has the resources to get as much NIL money as other schools. I think what he says is fair and true. Schools like his are going to have to find prospects that do not have the name recognition to get a NIL deal and then develop them into players who can then get a… Read more »
He can publicly whine about it, like a crybaby (in my eyes), or get to work and do something about it, like a lot of other coaches will and have already. Whittingham’s statement smacks of helplessness and self-pity, which is a very poor signal to send to your players, asst coaches, recruiting staff, recruits themselves, and fans. The truth is, coaching is still massively important, and always will be. Unless coaches like Jimbo Fisher and disaster-in-waiting Brent Venables get their acts together (among others), it won’t matter how much NIL money comes flooding into their gates. And some coaches at… Read more »
Tuipulotu Dominates! LOS ANGELES—USC JR DL Tuli Tuipulotu was named the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week and the Pac-12 Defensive Lineman of the Week for his performance in USC’s 30-14 win over WSU. This was the fifth consecutive game in which Tuipulotu had at least 1 TFL. On the season, he has 21 tackles with 12.5 for loss of 61 yds and 7 sacks for minus 49 yds. He has also collected 2 PBUs, 1 forced fumble and a QBH. This is Tuipulotu’s first Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week honor and his second time being named Pac-12 Defensive Lineman of… Read more »
His sack total is tops in college football.
I really had no idea how good Tuli was. He was only a 3-star DL with primarily west coast offers out of Hawthorne Lawndale, not exactly a power from what I know. Having to play under Clay Helton was never going to bring out his talent like a coach such as Lincoln Riley could. He’s amazing, no?
With this kind of season that he is having, this will be his last year at SC.
Ya, I’m afraid Tuli will be a goner, hopefully in R1. But he’s sure going out in style. What a season he is having. The way LR is moving him around is masterful. Such quickness!
This could be the week Riley opens up the entire playbook and lets it all out. Defense is better each game so we get the points up there on the board it could be a big USC win.
That would be awesome if he has been holding something back for this game.
The Pac12 refs will be with us again in Utah. I am afraid we are going to have the same type of pass defense played against us and they will miss an many interference calls as they did the last two games. Perhaps our defenders need to watch the film and start playing the same way, if they are not already. Will USC catch a break? Not in our lifetime. I wonder if LR has lodged complaints with the Pac12 about what these other teams are getting away with.
I haven’t watched a replay of the game yet and sitting in the end zone makes seeing the whole play tough. But I will bet the blatant uncalled pass interference I saw in the first quarter will look the same. I saw coach Riley go out to talk to the refs on the field Saturday, I wonder what was said. I have heard that officiating in the PAC 12 is the worst in D1 football but I really don’t have a measurement to go by. I just know WSU’s defense was all over our receivers and the ref couldn’t keep… Read more »
The targeting penalty situation/interpretation really seems to work improperly sometimes IMO. I’m all for safety to the max, but some of these penalties that get kids kicked out of games are hard to support, even though the letter of the law is technically being followed, at least per the refs. And the amount of time it takes to make some of these calls is ridiculous. Tricky stuff which has changed the game.
Say Rialto, from your view could you see if Caleb Williams was missing open receivers and throwing into tight coverage instead? Is he trying to make the big play too much or just trying to draw the PI call that the refs wouldn’t give?
From my angle his pass was catchable up to the point of blatant interference. Twice the receiver was in the grasp of the defender when the ball was thrown. The ball landed where the receiver would have been if he hadn’t been pulled down. The same ref threw a flag on USC when there was barely touching by our defender. The flag was waived off because the pass was thrown out of bounds. A couple of Caleb’s passes were low and one was batted down.
I’ve got to believe Caleb is in a funk reading the defenses or something. Here you have all this firepower and he stands back in the pocket until being flushed out and his passes aren’t as accurate as the beginning games.This shouldn’t happen as often as we’ve seen it these last few games. Of course LR’s recent game plans could be about holding onto the ball longer while on offense and giving the defense more rest on the sidelines? I watching some of the UCLA-Utah game and it didn’t surprise me a whole lot Utah lost that game. Both their… Read more »
UCLA saved itself from massive humiliation and degradation when they came from behind to beat South Alabama 32-31, because the Jaguar coach gave the game away at the Rose Bowl. UCLA has been a hot team ever since and their offense, both in the air and on the ground, looks very dangerous to me based on what I’ve seen in the last three games. UTAH always seemed like they were kind of hanging on against the Bruins in the Rose Bowl. The Bruins basically ran the Utes off the field. It’s pretty telling that USC is 6-0 with all of… Read more »
USC has not been firing on all cylinders last 3 games but still find a way to win. I wonder if CW is pressing, trying to do Heisman worthy plays every time. On TV it is often hard to tell who is open unless there is a replay. But there have been some plays where a guy is wide open but CW tries to thread the needle somewhere else. LR needs to get him fixed. I wish the bye was this week not next. We will need a full team effort in SLC.
It sure would be nice to see Caleb get back on track with his passing game. As you say, he’s missing open guys, and missing open throws too. I also don’t quite understand why sometimes he likes to run out of bounds and lose yardage instead of throwing it out of bounds when outside the pocket for no loss. But it seems flat-out strange for me to complain about a guy who is so responsible for USC’s success. This is a complicated team. More will be revealed, as they say. In the meantime, thank goodness for Travis Dye and Tuli… Read more »
To quote the (not so) great Scott Wolf, “Does anyone even mention UCLA has played one road game? And it was in Boulder! Did everyone forget those nonconference games?”
I think Wolf makes an interesting point: Ucla can’t win in front of a large crowd. The problem with Wolf’s blog is the unregulated trolls who chase real Trojans off. There are people there who post using other posters names and always finish with some Jr. porn star talk. There are no rules on that blog except THERE ARE NO RULES.
UCLA plays in the Pac-12 and plays 2/3 of its games in a stadium no one wants to go to. They don’t have to play in front of large crowds. SC will probably lead the conference in home attendance this year with an [announced] average of 60-65,000. That’s less than the elite SEC and B1G teams draw for their spring games.
So true, but USC fans have so much to pick from. They can watch the game sitting on the beach.
But build a consistent winner and even the beach bums will come. Pete Carroll proved that. It only took 3 years to sell out the Coliseum for a game against Colorado State.
Also, have you noticed that while the SEC and B1G schools are constantly expanding their stadiums’ capacity the trend among Pac-12 schools is to downsize? UCLA, SC, Arizona State, Stanford, Oregon State, Cal all come to mind.
UTAH opens as 3-point faves over USC
cbssports.com
Well Home team gets 3 points so I call that a “Toss -of-a coin ” game ….. FIGHT ON !!!!!
Agree this game could go any which way.
First Saturday of October football in the bag. I think UCLA might be legit. Tennessee is, although this season’s LSU is fraudulent so that was a fraud-stomping. You guys get a hard fought win. Need those kind of wins when the O just isn’t right or opponent’s D is for real. Feel good about my Buckeyes and this Saturday bye comes at a good time.
USC @ UT. PSU @ ttun. Bama @ UT.
Big weekend coming up.
I think you guys are the best team in the country. We are not there yet, but should be just about the time we roll into Big10. It’s going to be fun!
Have to admit. This is the first season in years that I’ve watched a PAC 12 game. Watched/glimpsed both USC & UCLA because B1G and good teams and games.
Doing a little scouting, are you? Your Bucks are definitely in the top 3, maybe 1st, but your ND win was devalued a bit. Your PSU game will tell us more, and of course your game against that team up north. Solidly in the top 4 is really all you need to be, and you’re there without a doubt.
Wouldn’t say scouting, but paying attention for the first time in a while. Not sure how good PSU really is. Auburn is really bad, but the nits get a lot of credit for winning a game in the deep south. Michigan really hasn’t played anyone and bad Iowa and Indiana have both played close for 3 quarters. I like @Tennessee to beat Bama for the first time in 15 years, but I think only if Young doesn’t play. Also UT’s OT went out with an injury v LSU. He needs to be back for the Vols. Something still isn’t right… Read more »
USC is a GREAT team…. Not yet elite like OSU or couple others, but a ‘great team’ that loves playing together and wins. they take challenges head on and respond. Special teams was a disaster waiting to happen. Coach challenged them, they responded. D line has responded, whole D has responded.. Players trust each other and they trust the coaches that lead them….When was the last time USC football was in this state? well probably when these players were 5 or 6 old. Bravo USC Football !
Don’t Mock the Trojans!
“In the East Coast prime-time slot, Lincoln Riley’s sixth-ranked Trojans were challenged once again, this time by a capable Washington State team, but ran off 20 unanswered points to win comfortably 30-14.
“People who nitpick USC are showing their true colors at this point — they’re either self-loathing Trojans or folks whose faces turn cardinal at the thought of USC winning…”
msn.com
It’s football … it’s a grind, a hard grind. A 16 pt win over a tough Wazzu team that won a opener at Wisconsin before Whisky knew it sucked, is a keeper.
It is amazing that it is the defense holding the team together. The defense in the second halfs makes adjustments and delivers. No 26 carried the Trojan offense on his shoulders with 150 yards rushing. The passing game seems to be boom or bust. But the talent is there to be great. Maybe Caleb should stop only looking for the big plays to Addison and Mario. Addison was double or tripled covered. But quick short to intermediate passes were there Against the really good teams have to take what the defense gives. Like to see some more fast developing plays… Read more »
Coaches Poll (USC remains at 6)
AP Poll
1. Georgia
2. Ohio State
3. Alabama
4. Clemson
5. Michigan
6. Tennessee
7. USC
8. Oklahoma State
9. Ole Miss
10. Penn State
11. UCLA
12. Oregon
13. TCU
14. Wake Forest
15. North Carolina State
16. Mississippi State
17. Kansas State
18. Syracuse
19. Kansas
20. Utah
21. Cincinnati
22. Texas
23. Kentucky
24. Illinois
25. James Madison
UT jumping over USC in polls proves that the national media values any win over an SEC team higher than any win over a P12 team. Who says LSU is better than WASt? The AP, that’s who.
At least USC kept its #6 rank in the Coaches Poll, just like ALA stayed #1, ORE stayed ahead of UCLA, and ND was kept out of the top 25. Kiffin’s Rebels (Land Sharks) remain at #9. I like it.
POSTGAME QUOTES | USC USC vs. Washington State United Airlines Field at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | Los Angeles, Calif. Saturday, Oct. 8, 2022 HEAD COACH LINCOLN RILEY Opening Statement: “Really, really tough, hard-fought win. We had to win this one, again in a different way. We talked to the guys all week about how circumstances don’t make or break you whether they are positive or negative. They just reveal your training; they reveal what’s inside of a team, what’s inside of the person. It was fitting because the way the game played out, some key guys for us… Read more »
CBS Sports predictions for the AP Top 25 Alabama Crimson Tide (6-0) Georgia Bulldogs (6-0) Ohio State Buckeyes (6-0) Clemson Tigers (6-0) Michigan Wolverines (6-0) Tennessee Volunteers (5-0) USC Trojans (6-0) Oklahoma State Cowboys (5-0) Ole Miss Rebels (6-0) Penn State Nittany Lions (5-0) UCLA Bruins (6-0) TCU Horned Frogs (5-0) Oregon Ducks (5-1) NC State Wolfpack (5-1) Wake Forest Demon Deacons (5-1) Kansas State Wildcats (5-1) Syracuse Orange (5-0) Mississippi State Bulldogs (5-1) Kansas Jayhawks (5-1) Utah Utes (4-2) Cincinnati Bearcats (5-1) Notre Dame Fighting Irish (3-2) BYU Cougars (4-2) Baylor Bears (3-2) James Madison Dukes (5-0) CBS Sports has Notre Dame, Baylor and James Madison entering this week’s top 25. As a result, Kentucky (previously… Read more »
This pretty much sums it up: Antonio Morales (The Athletic) — “USC wasn’t at its best against Washington State. Caleb Williams and Jordan Addison, by their standards, had relatively quiet nights. But there was Tuli Tuipulotu, who dominated the Cougars with three sacks and four tackles for loss, and there was Travis Dye, who rushed for 149 yards and a touchdown, carrying the offense on a night the passing game wasn’t clicking. “The Trojans weren’t as electric as they’ve shown at certain points in its five prior games, but honestly, it didn’t matter. USC showed once again, it can win in… Read more »
Just one great disrupter like Tuli, Hufanga before him, and Aaron Donald, can sure make up for lack of enough talent across the defense. You can ride him all season. Hopefully he stays healthy the rest of the year
In my first return to the coliseum in what seems like forever I was a little out of my element. A delightful surprise was the entering procedure. I had to place all my pocket stuff (keys, phone, rocket launcher, etc.) into a clear plastic bag, but the guy at the gate picked it up and looked underneath it to make sure my grenades were only smoke grenades. Then my wife scanned her phone to get me through the turnstiles. ( I told her to hang on to that phone because I wanted to print the score on the back and… Read more »
Good morning from Frisco, TX. The first half of the season has played out as well as we could have hoped. We can now turn to the second half, which starts next week in SLC against the Utes, a team that is very difficult to beat at home and a team with its season on the line. If the Utes lose to the Trojans, they will effectively be removed from the Pac 12 championship game – for they will trail both SC and UCLA by three games (tie breaker) and Oregon by two. . If SC wins on Saturday, it… Read more »
I did not realize Shane Lee did not play last night. Makes the defensive performance better, considering we lost a player to the Karen rule (that’s what I consider the targeting infraction, folks).