No. 19 USC football’s defense has final say in win over Penn State
Jayden Maiava throws for 301 yards and three touchdowns before the No. 19 Trojans make two pivotal fourth-quarter defensive plays to secure a 31-23 victory in front of a record White Out crowd of 114,419
USC DE Luke Wafle tackles PSU TE Andrew Rappleyea during the first half on Saturday, Oct. 10, in State College, Pa, during White Out game. (AP Photo/Barry Reeger)
Haley Sawyer (OC Register) — STATE COLLEGE — No. 19 USC football was neck-deep in a game that had the power to define its season; one that could potentially decide its fate in the College Football Playoff. The Trojans led Penn State by just one point at the start of the fourth quarter.
The Trojans’ passing game went toe-to-toe with the conference’s best passing defense and stacked up three touchdowns to win 31-23 in front of a record-breaking, White Out game crowd of 114,419 fans.
“One of my favorite wins as a head coach, no question,” beleaguered head coach Lincoln Riley told reporters. “For so many reasons … Nobody in the world gave a chance to come in and win those games, and we did it. We did it our way. Really proud of our team. We didn’t listen to all that you guys say on the outside. This group doesn’t really care.”
Jayden Maiava’s fourth-quarter touchdown pass to Kayden Dixon-Wyatt gave USC the separation it needed to win the game.
“Just a great week of preparation,” Maiava said. “Kayden trusted and stayed in it, and I told him, just be ready for it when it comes.”
USC’s only loss this season has come to Oregon, earlier losers at home to UCLA 17-15, and Saturday’s win keeps the Trojans (6-1 overall, 3-1 Big Ten) in the hunt for its first-ever CFP appearance.
Maiava, who had struggled at times the past few weeks, finished the game 21-of-33 for 301 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions. Running back King Miller rushed for 102 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries.
Star freshman receiver Trent Mosley (4; 9 receptions, 111 yards) made an immediate impact in his return after missing the last three games due to a knee injury. He scored the first touchdown of the game when Maiava flicked a 19-yard pass over the middle of the field to his outstretched body in the end zone.
“That was just a game-time decision, but yeah, I’ve been prepping for a while to get my body right and get back,” Mosley said. “Mentally, they’re a bunch of fans, but they don’t really do nothing against you except make noise.”
Penn State equaled the score on the following drive.
Quarterback Rocco Becht, who threw for a season-high 289 yards while going 21-of-32, sent a 47-yard pass to Chase Sowell on the second play of the drive to gain early momentum. It was a tight end, however, who hauled in the touchdown.
Andrew Rappleyea broke to his left for a clear shot at the end zone, and Becht hit him with a 13-yard touchdown pass.
Penn State’s tight ends combined for 92 yards in the game.
The Trojans’ offense ground away against the best passing defense in the Big Ten and scored again through the air at the start of the second quarter.
Tanook Hines (16) showed elite body control when he caught a pass at the 1-yard line and reached his arm out to get the ball over the goal line while Nittany Lions cornerback Joseph Jahmir was wrapping up his legs.
“We tried to be balanced tonight, and we knew we were going to have to do both (run and pass) at times,” said Riley, who managed to tune-out significent recent criticism. “And I give our guys credit. Good execution on all sides gives a play caller confidence to call anything at any moment. And these guys definitely gave me that confidence tonight.”
Penn State responded quickly again.
The Nittany Lions continued to gain yardage on chunk plays with a 37-yard pass to Sowell, then switched to its run game. James Peoples rattled off back-to-back 8-yard rushes before Carson Hansen rushed toward the end zone from three yards out, falling into scoring territory with the ball in the crook of his arm.
USC kicker Ryon Sayeri’s 56-yard field goal attempt went wide right of the goalpost on the next drive, but Caden Chittenden found success on a 37-yard field goal with 2:11 remaining until halftime and brought the score to 17-14 in USC’s favor.
Riley made the curious decision to open the third quarter with an onside kick, which failed, setting up a Nittany Lions scoring drive.
“We felt like there was some air there,” Riley said. “Give their guys credit. If he doesn’t make the play, we got about three guys right there. No guts. No glory.”
Penn State used a pair of field goals to get the advantage back. Ryan Barker had successful strikes from 48 and 35 yards out for a 20-17 lead.
King Miller added a 13-yard rushing touchdown to give USC a 24-20 advantage, and the Trojans had the chance to make a fourth-down defensive statement when Penn State was faced with a fourth-and-short situation late in the third quarter.
Both teams surged forward with enough force to bring out the chain gang, and it was ultimately ruled that the Nittany Lions secured a fresh set of downs.
Penn State continued a grueling drive that took 14 plays to go an eventual 68 yards. The Nittany Lions were held to a few short gains after the critical fourth down and settled for another Ryan Barker field goal, this one from 21 yards out, to make it a 1-point game.
Kayden Dixon-Wyatt only had one catch in the game when Maiava looked to him, needing a spark.
The freshman burst into a sprint on a corner route left into the end zone, where he beat his defender to make the catch with 11:11 on the clock for a 31-23 lead.
“I knew my time was coming,” Dixon-Wyatt said. “I just had to be patient. I just made a good play when the team needed it most.”
USC came up with two pivotal defensive plays to lock up the win.
Luke Wafle sacked Becht on third down, forcing Penn State to punt with 6:02 left in the game; then the Trojans’ defense forced a turnover on the Nittany Lions’ following drive.
Brett Eskildsen originally caught a pass from Becht, but Christian Pierce was lurking close by and wrapped him up aggressively enough to pop the ball loose. The ball fell at Chasen Johnson’s feet, and the cornerback scooped up the ball.
“That’s nothing but me just trusting the coaches’ scheme and my teammates,” Johnson said. “Luckily CP banged out that ball, and I just saw the ball and I just jumped on it. I knew that was a play that I just had to get down on the ground for my team.”
USC was resilient in front of a roaring crowd that typically forces visitors to make mistakes in crunch time. But USC was prepared — they blasted crowd noise during practice at the Bloom Performance Center to help prepare the Trojans for the hostile environment.
“Whichever donor money went to that sound system, tip of the cap,” Riley said with a smile.
USC enters the bye week on a two-game win streak and will return to the field on Oct. 24 at Wisconsin.
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The thoughts I’ve been having since Saturday: I am not in the “Riley outcoached Campbell” crowd. You can only get so much juice out of that late time-out forcing play. It was a good moment for sure. But Riley also put our team in a tough “two for one” situation at the end of the first half by winning the opening toss and not deferring like every other coach in the world (sans Sean McVay!). It’s hard enough on the road. He tried to mitigate that mistake with a disastrous failed onside kick attempt to start the second half (a… Read more »
Mark Sanchez reaches settlement in civil lawsuit filed by truck driver he allegedly assaulted and also pleads guilty in criminal case … Chuck Schilken (LAT) — Mark Sanchez has reached an agreement in principle to end the civil case against him filed by a truck driver who got into a physical altercation with the former USC and NFL quarterback last fall. Indiana resident Perry Tole filed the civil lawsuit against Sanchez and Fox Corp last October, alleging that he suffered “severe permanent disfigurement, loss of function, other physical injuries, emotional distress, and other damages” as a result of the incident… Read more »
I’ve been listening to the LAT House of Troy podcasts by Ryan Kartje. Four episodes have been released so far from Sept. 22 thru Oct. 13. They are outstanding and I would highly recommend them. I’ve learned a lot of amazing inside and enlightening details that you may discover have slipped between the cracks in this exhaustive and extremely well done expose about the recent history of USC football. Over 100 interviews were conducted for the show which took four years to produce. They are extremely well-produced by L.A. Times Studios and the narrative audio series itself is free and… Read more »
Chesney showed up on Colin Cowherd’s show today. Simple message: always put the team first. No exceptions. And always put your team-mates second, and you third. Bring in people who are very like-minded and cut from the same cloth. Don’t come to UCLA if you expect to be paid the most and unless you are willing to work hard enough to win the B1G championship very soon. Everybody matters, every coach, every staff, support or custodial member, every player, every single individual who contributes to Bruin football in any way — nobody is more important than anyone else. Discard all… Read more »
UCLA’s 5-7, 195 lb RB Wayne Knight is probably better than any RB USC has. He reminds me of Maurice Drew. Their blocking schemes are more downhill and the Bruin running game approach is different too. Much more focus on the ground attack.
You say “Much more focus on the ground attack”. In that sense, this new QB(Diffenbach) might help their running game. They say he is mobile. He ran for 300 yards last year. Of course, that was at Cal Poly….not exactly a juggernaut.
I figure UCLA’s gonna lean even more heavily on their running game going forward. The Bruins have no signature play-making WRs, but their defense is good. Their backup QBs just aren’t that impressive compared with Nico Iamaleava, who wasn’t always great by any means, but he was their clear best player at the position despite a penchant for turnovers. This is a huge setback for the charmed Chesney. UCLA has to play in Minneapolis and Ann Arbor. Not great opponents, but clearly losable games without their starting QB. And UCLA has no more byes, so it’s a rugged straight shot… Read more »
I sure do agree with you but for the life of me I cannot see what they can do to help with the run game. At this stage of the season they can’t change the offense blocking schemes to much. Other than the counter, they run up the gut. When they do run outside they seem to have some success, so I have to ask, why do they keep running up the middle? I would love to see Jonas come in and run the ball a couple of times during a game, then when we play Ohio St let him… Read more »
Inside College Football picks (CBS Sports Network)
#4 OHIO ST (three game losing streak to top 10 teams) at #5 IU (9 am PT/Fox)
Sportsline — IU 26-25
Aaron Taylor — OHIO ST — “IU can get after the QB. OHIO ST will win as long as they don’t get trapped into playing conservative small ball and they rely on Jeremiah Smith to make big plays.”
Rick Neuheisel — OHIO ST — “IU couldn’t run the ball against NEB.”
Brian Jones — OHIO ST — “IU QB Josh Hoover will throw his first pick of the season.”
Ryan Day will not take chances in big games until his team gets behind and has to open up. These sports line experts are assuming OSU has superior athletes that will expose the Hoosiers. They are not giving Cignetti’s team the respect his teams won’t beat themselves. Everyone is predicting Jeremiah Smith will make the difference in this matchup. He may be it. This could be a tight game to the end and go into overtime with both coaches playing it close to the cuff waiting for a fumble or pick to give them an advantage.
Talk about a can’t-miss game. I can’t wait to see it. The Legend of Curt Cignetti will be on full display in Bloomington at 9 am PT (Fox, Big Noon Kickoff game). What a battle this could be! Now it’s Bob Chesney who is viewed as the most current version of Cignetti. It’s utterly amazing that lightning in a bottle has struck twice in this manner in such a short time in CFB. Just last year we were all saying there would never be another Cignetti. Now, UCLA may already have another one. Of course Chesney still has a long… Read more »
I still say Beat the Irish! — even though we aren’t playing them until Aug 31, 2030 Stewart Mandel (The Athletic) — Remember when Notre Dame announced a trip to BYU as its replacement for USC (then the Trojans scheduled San Jose State)? It turned out to be both a schedule upgrade for the Irish and a historic moment for the Cougars, who next week will host the first-ever top-10 matchup at LaVell Edwards Stadium. No. 8 BYU (5-0) has a chance to make a statement for not just itself but its conference if it can knock off the third-ranked… Read more »
It could turn out that the best thing that ever happened to Lincoln Riley was Bob Chesney (the first Bruin coach to EVER start out 5-0). That’s a very complicated, seemingly nonsensical assertion, but the CFB game is now changed in L.A. UCLA’s suddenly a real threat. USC hasn’t had to seriously worry about this in years. Chip Kelly (only 35-34 at UCLA) actually went 3-3 vs USC, but he was able to take advantage of Gentleman Clay. Riley’s post game quotes after beating PSU reveal a coach who has clearly been stung very hard by the vocal USC fans… Read more »
There’s an edge rusher from Utah who is one of the better players in the country. He’s visited a number of schools already and he listed his top 3 schools so far. UCLA was mentioned first. I don’t know if that means he has them top of the list. SC is still trying to get a visit. It looks like it is no longer just Oregon we have to worry about in recruiting. But then again I wonder how much money the Bruins have to offer.
The Bruins are gonna be much, much more difficult to beat on the recruiting trail, as well as on the field. It’s been expressed here before that having UCLA better would improve the USC/UCLA rivalry and make the games more entertaining. Frankly, I’d rather just beat UCLA’s head in. In any case, there’s no hotter coach in the nation right now than Bob Chesney. He’s everywhere, in lights. That’s the way it goes when you take over a long-slumped big media market program and go 5-0 for the first time in your first year at the school that Wooden built.… Read more »
The podcasts this week are questioning the level talent PSU has this season. Even their coach hints this in post game remarks. Seems no is willing to give this win much credit including the AP poll. Many are also doubting USC can win 3 of the last 4 games of this season putting them in the playoff. Running the ball & defending the pass has got to improve quickly.
Ya, I don’t see USC winning four out of the last five — not in the real world. That’s why the loss to ORE in the Coliseum hurt so bad. As a Trojan we can all fantasize about USC getting super hot, going 4-1, and making the playoffs. Wouldn’t that be great?! But that would fly in the face of everything I’ve seen from all of USC’s final opponents. Nobody I’ve read in the media has USC pegged as a playoff team at this stage. If anyone can find even one, please let us all know exactly who that is.… Read more »
I’ve lost confidence in LR as a HC who can bring us an NC. I once hoped he would evolve into that kind of a coach. But I can’t help rooting for him. Judging by his emotions, he really does seem to want this job. I hope he succeeds.
I was in Philadelphia at an Air B&B Saturday night and was reduced to “listening” to the game because the owner didn’t even put basic cable on their TV (and our credentials didn’t work for peacock) so I spent a rainy Sunday afternoon catching “highlights” on YouTube. I thought we did a good job scoring, but barely okay on defense. Maiava is a Jeckle and Hyde quarterback at times brilliant and other times… did he really just do that? Without the talented freshmen core we have we would have been dead in the water IMO. Which brings me to my… Read more »
If I remember correctly, USC could not get out of its own way when NIL started, and that was a big part of the recruiting out of the portal. Then the current AD was scared to death of the ncaa while many other schools jumped in with money and pay to play got going. It is still pay to play, but the ncaa has given it some respectability. When Riley first came on board he told several players to hit the road, the channels to the old recruiting pipelines (like MD) were non existant because of Helton. Then along came… Read more »
USC never went even close to 11-1 under Lincoln Riley. You must be thinking about the 2022 11-3 year when UTAH beat USC twice (by a destruction derby score of 47-24 once), after which USC flopped big-time against unranked TUL and embarrassed themselves in a ridiculous 46-45 bowl loss. That was one of Riley’s worst coaching letdowns ever. I could go over numerous other failings of LR while at USC which you omitted that had nothing whatsoever to do with NIL, but these issues have already been covered at length for several years by every CFB or Trojan site in… Read more »
It was early, I was getting long and I figured all the stuff I didn’t write about was already known and been hashed over on here. I tried to simply hit some of the major points. But if you took exception to what I wrote, that is surely your priveledge. Yes 11-1 should have been corrected, thank you for that. The failings of Riley have been pretty well covered on here, I sure didn’t think I needed to repeat all that, it is a lot. I do agree Chesney has lit a fire under USC, I hope they have what… Read more »
Nobody said you should have said nothing. Certainly not me. In fact, I’ve always encouraged you to say whatever is on your mind in whatever way you want. But in your comment you specifically stated — “Please anyone, correct me if I am wrong somewhere.” That’s why I responded. So I corrected you because you had the record wrong and Riley’s never had an 11-1 season at USC. Season three was also a 7-6 disaster, Riley’s lowest point, and hardly deserving of any praise. Nobody’s ever asked you to keep a thing to yourself Steveg. And if you chose to,… Read more »
I’m honestly sorry I said anything. I should have just let it all ride despite your request. Lesson learned.
I notice you significantly altered your post and deleted several statements after mine. I’m only pointing that out because your comment no longer includes things I specifically addressed. If this means you won’t be keeping future things to yourself, I’m very glad to hear that!
I think you hit the nail on the head about Bowden. I think Jen also has some questions she should be asking Riley about some coaching mistakes he’s made in game management. Building is the key and the better we play in the meantime the better the building will go. I am sorry I took so long to respond to your answer. The boat we’re on lost power before we left port and the internet went down. I have read the back and forth on my question and can only say we have one of the best blog experiences around.… Read more »
Lincoln Riley — “I got a lot of problems, but being competitive ain’t one of them.” Haley Sawyer (OC Register) — USC has now won both of its road games after beating Rutgers in Piscataway in Week 3. The Trojans struggled on the road last season, going 2-3, and performed even worse in the 2024 season with a 1-4 record in away games. This season, USC started a new tradition of adding a small plaque themed after each road win to the new Bloom Football Performance Center. A new one was on the wall when the Trojans returned to campus.… Read more »
Trent Mosley Named B1G Freshman of the Week After Dominant Return at PSU LOS ANGELES — USC phenom WR Trent Mosley has been named the Big Ten Freshman of the Week after his dominant play in the Trojans’ 31-23 road victory over PSU. The Santa Margarita product returned after missing three games (RUT, ORE, UW) with a knee injury suffered against LOUISIANA. He quickly scored on a 19-yd throw from Jayden Maiava on USC’s opening drive in front of a record White Out crowd of 114,419 at Beaver Stadium. He had a game-high nine catches for 111 yds and… Read more »
We all knew that Bear Alexander was a knucklehead, and now the whole world knows. And F Dan Lanning, the most overrated coach in CF, who made it sound like his players never take cheap shots. He agreed to take Bear, knowing he had a million$ body and a 10 cent brain. They deserve each other. This year Oregon doesn’t have to worry about being embarrassed in the playoffs.
Ya, the Egg’s ALL over Dan Lanning’s face now. Double whammy. He thoroughly abuses USC and Lincoln Riley after beating the Trojans yet again but piling on with the dirty player comments and Chris Brown concert references.
Now UCLA kicks his butt hard core in Eugene and Bear Alexander comes off as a Duck on-the-field criminal in their latest weekend get up.
What goes around, comes around big Dan.
But too bad for UCLA about Nico Iamaleava and his torn ACL.
Waiting to see what the head duck has to say now. I wholly agree with PN4SC that Lanning is way over rated. A good salesman, but not coach. Someone ought to file battery charges against Bear, he is a complete idiot. Always was. Fines are appropriate.
With what ucla has for backups at Qb it could be the end of the season for them. Nico was having a good season.
“Worse Than the USC Player Hit on Dante Moore”: CFB Fans Rip Oregon DL Bear Alexander for “Throwing UFC Punches” on UCLA’s Nico Iamaleava Yahoo Sports
Nico Iamaleava is out for the season thanks to Bear Alexander’s intentional cheap shot during ORE’s 17-15 loss to UCLA.
Alexander should be fined and suspended but neither ORE nor the B1G have the guts to do it — yet. But now that Nico has been ruled out for the year, we’ll see.
Tough blow for UCLA and Chesney for sure on an unsportsmanlike play.
The blow to the head did not take out Nico but it was a cheap shot and Bear should at least be suspended for a game like Stevens. Too bad he seemed to have found his home after some drama. Cinderella may have lost her slipper. Poor Ruins maybe good for USC.
What’s your position on players now being fined for egregious unsportsmanlike conduct on the field?
Now that they are making huge NIL money plus $ from schools in many instances, wouldn’t this be appropriate? Or do you think they should still be shielded from that punishment, even though that’s probably the one thing that would really inhibit outlandishly dangerous and reprehensible conduct?
I’m for fines if a player receives any NIL compensation, in addition to game expulsion and suspension. It’s probably the only thing that hurts them…the wallet, that is.
Everybody on the team is getting some part of the school revenue share of $15 million. They are semi pros and need to act like it. What ever the NFL model is would be good. I think that would have to come from at least the conference level to be fair.
I think it should be a fine for any unsportsmanlike, unnecessary roughness, targeting, roughing the passer, blocks below the knee, facemask and horse collary tackles, and blocks in the back. Coaches should be able to be fined also, not just the HC but all. Regulated by the nzaa of course.
I’m on board with that. The only weakness in the plan is “regulated by the nzaa”. Even the NFL struggles with consistent application of discipline. There’s no hope the nzaa could ever do it in any way other than poorly.
I agree. The NCAA should have no power. It’s a thoroughly corrupt, venal organization. Abolish it. Replace it with some other guard-railed, limited authority unifier organization.
For some reason it really seems that won’t happen any time very soon. It may, eventually, and this could be one of the straws that breaks that camels back. Until then…?
Probably another hopeless pursuit as conferences struggle with uniformity now. SEC just this year adding 9th conference game, for example. I think it has to be the conference commissioners working it out among themselves.
I have to give props to Riley, because he did something I didn’t think he was capable of. Namely, prepare a team to play clean, focused football despite having to travel multiple time zones, in a hostile environment. I know Penn State is pretty average, but this is a game USC loses any of the last several years. I hope we have turned a corner. The Wisconsin game will be very revealing.
Agree PN4SC, ready to play an east coast game, success attacking what was supposed to be a good pass defense (#3 in the nation), 3 penalties for 25 yds, forced PSU to use up TOs, got defensive stops at the end, ran out the clock. Not what we’ve seen from Riley in the past. I was hoping to see this August 29 or even September 26, but I’ll take it. Yes, Penn St is essentially an average Big12 team and Wisconsin will be a different beast. But there was progress in team and coaching attitude and composure. Hope this week… Read more »
I think we are all in the same frame of mind. If the Trojans can show up against W like they did against Penn State and beat them on the road, then we are not looking at the same LR who went 2-3 on the road last year and 1-4 the year before. He will actually be 3-0 on the road.
I agree. I do not know why folks are downplaying what happened. Do you think Sarkesian would have downplayed beating a mediocre OK team if TX has won by 8? Is NE really that much better than Penn State that Indiana getting a victory over them in a very hostile environment was not worthwhile? I remember Oregon beating a Penn State team that went 7-6 in a White Out game and being praised. This was probably Riley signature win so far in his career (the response will be – so what? Let him beat an elite team and then talk… Read more »
Yes, NEB is a lot better than PSU. The Huskers had actually taken control of the game at home over IU in the 4th Q and were poised to literally beat the national champs. I don’t know anyone who thinks USC is superior to IU, though there may be one or two people in the world who believe this. Undoubtedly, this PSU win is Riley’s best win ever at USC. That’s mainly because he has no others, unless you count beating a 4-loss IOWA team last year in the Coliseum as a massive accomplishment. That was literally Riley’s high water… Read more »
We both watch the same game with Nebraska/Indiana. It was a great game. I do believe Nebraska played over their heads in that one, it was their super bowl game. Perhpas they will prove me wrong, and I’m okay with that, I would love to see Nebraska become dominant again. Indiana can be beat I think, and Ohio St is going to do it.
It was a GREAT game. NEB was playing out of their minds. They’ve been waiting for this win forever, having lost 30 straight games to ranked teams.
Then IU showed their true colors and stole the game back, while playing away. That’s quite an accomplishment in a place like Lincoln and IU’s QB is no where near as good as Fernando Mendoza. I agree, IU is beatable.
But I don’t think USC will beat them in Bloomington and we have to to make the playoffs, because I think the Buckeyes nail USC in L.A.
So looks like Oregon is the team getting grief from a cheap shot to the QB. It seems Bear Alexander took a swing to the head when Nico was down. UCLA may be without Iamaleava for some time with a leg injury. UCLA’s backup QB went 3 of 6 for 43 yds and a TD and a 13 yd sack. Could be trouble for the Ruins. Nebraska gave Indy all it could handle, Wisconsin beat PSU by only 4. Outside of Ohio St the B1G could be wide open week to week.
Absolutely. He’s a thug and he was horrible at USC. ORE and Lanning should be ashamed of themselves, especially after what Lanning said about USC’s program.
ORE could lose 4-5 games if they aren’t careful. USC may have lost to the Ducks, but UCLA shattered Raiola’s confidence (I would think), and without Dante Moore (concussion), the Ducks could get beat by NEB, NW, OHIO ST and MICH. So sad.
If UCLA can get their QB back healthy, I think that they will make the playoffs. Look at the teams that they still have left…..Wisconsin, MSU, Nevada, Minnesota Illinois, Michigan and USC. Of those, I only see 3 real threats(if UCLA has their QB)…..Wisconsin, Michigan and USC. If they can win 2 out of those 3 games, they will only have one loss and surely they will be chosen. If they don’t get their QB back, they’re in trouble because they really don’t have a solid 2nd string QB. Ty Diffenbach threw for 1300 yards with 9 TD’s and 9… Read more »
If UCLA does make the playoffs(and USC doesn’t make it) and beats USC in the final game of the year, they fans will be irate. So if I was Jen Cohen I would start my search for a new HC.
I sincerely doubt Jen wants to move into the world of a big-time CFB coach hunt. That’s a space that’s fraught with danger and expense.
She’s desperately hoping that Lincoln Riley can do well enough to not completely make it impossible for her to keep him.
She’s stuck with LR like we all are. We’ll see how she feels after the OHIO ST, WIS, IU and UCLA games. If LR loses three out of those four, the vast majority of USC fans will be very pissed. Especially if Chesney beats him on Nov. 28.
I wonder what she would do if we lose all 4 of those games…..go 7-5….and UCLA makes the playoffs…..and at the same time there is a proven great coach out there that is sending out feelers that he wants the job.
“A proven great coach out there that is sending out feelers he wants the job.” I just don’t see that happening. And if it were happening, I think it would leak out and we’d hear about it. People talk. They can’t help it, especially when they want to make news, make a point, or make trouble. And Jen Cohen’s operating in a super tough environment. Not only does USC still owe LR a bank vault of money that would be hugely difficult to absorb, but USC still feels stung by the fact that it hired and overpaid an over-rated, ill-fitting… Read more »
I think we know who the elites are and they aren’t leaving. Then maybe in the middle of the Power 4 pack there is a guy who is a bad fit where he’s at and would be at USC, doubt it. Maybe bottom of the Power 4 that is good but lacks resources, no idea who. Best bet would be a Cignetti, Chesney type, a Group of 6 winner where ever he goes.
Can’t argue with that. I’d consider directly asking Cignetti, Smart, Day, Freeman, Saban and Chesney who they would hire and ask them to name only one guy. One single guy who they’ve either coached with, against, or just heard about through the grapevine as an up-and-comer who has what it takes to run a huge program where winning big is required. That’s my pipe dream answer. But I agree. I’d go for a guy amongst a 10-15 coach pool who impressed my expert search committee (yes, I would have one that was attached to USC in some spots, not just… Read more »
We really did catch lightning in a bottle with Pete C. Pete had it all including a personality that was a perfect fit for USC that could have possibly dreamt of. What a great motivator, culture builder, hard-nosed, charismatic leader he was.
Ya, Pete Carroll was an amazing luxury for us USC fans to experience. He was so confident, engaging, creative, and upbeat, yet inside lived a never-give-up killer who would just as soon beat your head in. Fight On! He repped it so well.
Maybe I should go back to my old way of thinking….that he will evolve into a great coach….since we are stuck with this guy. Another possibility is let’s go out and hire a great O and D line coach. Our O-Line is good when it comes to pass blocking but mediocre when it comes to run blocking. NW gained 413 yards against PSU. We gained 129. Also….all I heard before the season started was how we had one of the best D-lines in the country. So far we have 15 sacks in 7 games. There are 33 teams that have… Read more »
Riley surprises us all and team makes playoffs. Jen does nothing, problem pushed to next year at earliest.
Team tanks and loses 4 or more remaining games. Jen is on the hotseat to do something, good chance she makes a move.
Team wins a couple and loses a couple of remaining signature games. Tough one for Jen, she probably stays the course but imposes more change to lessen the public grumbling.
They have nothing at QB behind Nico….a bunch of 3 stars. They do have one 4 star…..his brother Madden but I guess they don’t have much confidence in him because they only used him a few plays in the Oregon game.
Two things stand out from last night’s game. First Riley managed to eat up some of the clock two ways. When Penn State had a late offensive substitution USC sent in their own substitution which forced Penn State to take a time out. It’s a quirky rule which USC had actually been burned with. Riley found out how to pull the stunt to his advantage. Then he slowed the offense down working up the field with run plays and took time off the clock. (It didn’t hurt that Penn State used their last time out after an incomplete pass which… Read more »
My two cents…. All around great effort….. USC just went into a game 3 time zones east of LA and played in front of a historic home crowd. Rocco played very well, which he was not doing in prior games. Maiava played well. Turnovers were not prevalent. It was a solid win against a struggling team. Is the door open for a surprise win against one of the elites……yes. To expect 5-0 is a long reach. To think 4-1 could happen is unlikely but possible. To expect 3-2 is reasonable. Riley is still Riley but this team with Maiava’s speed… Read more »
illinoisusc — How do you get around the fast that PSU is a crap 3-3 team with wins only against pure cupcakes and already two losses at home with a new coach? Or do you just not believe that? Do you think PSU is secretly a good club despite the fact they haven’t received a single solitary vote from either the media or the coaches?
Struggling means struggling. They have some talent………..proven coaching…..but…..it sure has not been put together yet…..will it….who knows.
Are they secretly a good club……not now.
However…..USC struggled against Rutgers…..this was a solid win in a white out.
I don’t believe Campbell has proven at all that he is a solid coach in the B1G. Not yet. We’ll all have to see about that, but the jury is for sure still out on that one. I’d like to poll PSU fans about their opinion on that. He could turn out to be very average for all we know.
I still say when USC played PSU last night, they were a crap team. Sometimes you get the luck of the draw. We deserved a break and we got one which we took advantage of. Good for the Trojans!
OK, so what you’re saying is that the Trojans have played nothing but crap this year. Not one good team. After all Oregon just got beat by UCLA at home.
Do we go 1-4 the rest of the way? Call it!
Unfortunately, you’re correct, except ORE is good. But an even better UCLA team (without its starting QB) took it to them. If you want to point out the excellence of any of the other teams we’ve played so far, I’m all ears. So we lost to the one good team we’ve played. Most of us all even predicted that. And we all know that the schedule really begins now. OHIO ST and IU look like objective losses to me. UCLA’s a toss-up in the Rose Bowl and a can’t miss L.A. event. We go 2-3 or 3-2 the rest of… Read more »
So 8-4 or 9-3. As for Oregon, did they get beat or beat themselves. Seven turnovers. A QB that placed pin point passes against us could not hit the broad side of a barn. Two point win with SEVEN turnovers. What good team commits 7 turnovers. Let’s face it…..and I’am having a hard time with it…..The BIG this year…..not so hot. Maybe O State wins it all but I doubt it. UCLA is running thru a pile of crap….so is USC. Indiana is ok, but you and I called it…..Hoover ain’t no Mendoza. We could take them. I know you… Read more »
I watched the entire UCLA/ORE game. IMO, UCLA beat the hell out of the Ducks. They really pounded them, especially on D, and directly caused some of those TOs. Their QB got spooked and lost all of his confidence before he got benched. UCLA’s D was the big surprise here. ORE couldn’t sustain ANY drives for the first three quarters. The game wasn’t nearly as close as the score. The Bruins missed so many opportunities. I give IU more credit than you do for coming back to win in Lincoln. 90% of the teams that had fallen behind like the… Read more »
Yes it was a win over a struggling team. Just the same this game has been targeted as a Whiteout and in prime time TV making it important for this PSU team to play its heart out for a win. For Our Trojan team, it can take congrats & lessons learned during this bye week.
Do you believe PSU was any more inclined to play its heart out than USC? I don’t. Each team was reeling, knowing that a loss would drop it into complete oblivion.
USC played its heart out and deservedly won. Super effort, plus we were obviously more talented, plus we have Trent Mosley. Thank god for that!
The Coaches like USC a little more … but I wouldn’t rank USC over IOWA. No way based on their games against UW.
The Associated Press rankings carry more weight than polls like the Coaches Poll and FWAA Poll, as they are part of the deciding factor in which teams reach the College Football Playoff. The Coaches Poll, which is not part of the College Football Playoff selection committee’s formula to determine the four teams that will compete for the College Football Playoff National Championship, is voted on by 65 FBS head coaches.
1. Georgia
2. Notre Dame
3. Miami (Fla.) 4. Ohio State 5. Indiana
6. Alabama
7. Texas
8. BYU
9. Ole Miss
10. Texas Tech
11. Utah 12. UCLA
13. Missouri
14. Tennessee
15. Kentucky
16. Mississippi State 17. Iowa
18. Oklahoma State 19. USC
20. Houston
21. Wake Forest
22. LSU
23. Boise State
24. SMU
25. Northwestern
Other Receiving Votes: Wisconsin 92, Oregon 86, Arizona 82, Nebraska 65, Oklahoma 44, James Madison 29, Florida 9, Duke 5, New Mexico 3, Oregon State 1
All that earlier talk we had about polls. USC holds #19 at 6-1 even though they lost to Oregon, previous #13 Oregon now 3-2 is GONE. USC has to continue to improve week to week to get in the hunt. Riley was a better coach last night.
Riley was better than Riley. 😀 He took his USC team to the east coast and won. No dumb mistakes. Made some strategic decisions. The onside kick attempt, had it worked, would have killed Penn St. So I give Riley credit for last night. He turned the hot seat down a notch is all. He needs to continue to improve.
Ya, lots of plays would be great — if only they worked! 😂😂
All kidding aside, we both made our points. Compared to many other coaches, Riley wasn’t any better than lots of them. But compared to himself, it was a very good night.
The USC players went to see the movie Heart of the Beastbefore the game, starring Brad Pitt and his amazing dog. I highly recommend that flick. Very inspirational!
It’s amazing how often that half-point makes a difference and can you imagine how much difference it makes to someone who might have had $50 on that total.
Congratulations for being on the right side of that pick!!
Ducks’ Trojan horse. This time, the joke’s on ORE … Haley Sawyer (OCR) — Oregon’s duck mascot took a shot at USC during his pregame entrance before Saturday’s UCLA game. It entered Autzen Stadium inside a wooden Trojan Horse prop that had a red tongue comically sticking out of its mouth. The duck jumped out of the back of the horse with a sword and shield, with the song “Old Town Road” playing. It waved them around before running back into the tunnel. USC lost to Oregon, 41-27 on Sept. 26, and the Ducks (thankfully) ended up losing to… Read more »
Lincoln Riley says that he doesn’t pay any attention to the chants by the fans. I think in his head this is a sign of strength, focus but it’s not. It’s his unwillingness to learn and see the stupidity in what he does. And he’s cherishing the away victory but this is a very bad Penn State, so let’s not get too excited there, champ. Yes we played better with less penalties and there is reason to believe we can finish with a 8-4 season and maybe go to a bowl and win, maybe? But I’m going to be honest… Read more »
After what I saw this week, USC will not beat IU and OHIO ST. UCLA is a rivalry toss-up at the Rose Bowl. With Trent Mosley, or best player even though he is a true freshman, we have a shot at beating the Bruins. Without him, who knows? He’s so big for USC! What a player. Some of the plays he made yesterday were just stupendous.
Did not see this one coming. I cannot recall LR coaching like this before. He was really into the game and extremely fired up. And the team played well. LR shredded the #1 pass defense in the B1G. Our D is an issue, but it was not a dumpster fire like it was at say Rutgers. This game was critical for Penn State. White out, with what I I understand was the largest crowd in Penn State history (over 114,000). Look at Penn State’s remaining games: at MI, Purdue at home, at Washington, Minnesota at home, Rutgers at home, and… Read more »
It is highly unlikely that this SC team makes the CFP. The schedule for 4 of the last 5 games is brutal. At Wisconsin, Ohio State, at Indiana, and at UCLA. The only break is Maryland at home. SC should be underdogs in 4 of the remaining 5 and double digit underdogs to both Ohio State and Indiana. Look at UCLA’s schedule: they play Wisconsin at home (tough game), Mich.State at home (certain victory), Nevada at home (scrimmage), at Minnesota (should win), Illinois at home (should win), at MI (should win), and then against us. Their toughest game prior to… Read more »
The only 2 undefeated teams in the B1G are Indiana and SUCLA?! Who would have guessed? USC could still need a win over Ruins to get a playoff spot. It feels wide open, a lot of parity happening in college football. SEC are beating each other up. Will USC 6-1 be ranked ahead of 3-2 Oregon?
Who would you vote for to be ahead of the other? ORE, or USC.
I don’t see how you can bump USC above. We beat a mediocre 3-3 PSU team with no good wins and ORE lost to a good UCLA team after beating us by double digits at the Coliseum with their 2nd string QB.
I always think the head to head match ups should count. So I would put Oregon over USC. But the polls seem to only look at wins and losses not who they play. Just look at ND. Oregon should have won if not for Lanning constant desire to go for 2. We’ll see if ND is for real next week at BYU.
ND’s pretty good IMO. Not great. But top 10 for sure. I know a lot of people here hate the Irish. Nothing wrong with that. Do you expect BYU to beat ND in Provo? Could happen.
Oh, I think BYU would have easily beaten PSU. I’m not impressed at all with the 3-3 Nits. They’ve only been able to beat cupcakes and just because they have a big name doesn’t transfer over to any brownie points for me. JMHO.
I would rank both OR and UCLA ahead of SC right now. While beating Penn State was an accomplishment for the Trojans, I think both OR and UCLA have shown themselves to be better teams than SC.
Chesney’s a better overall coach than Riley, at least in the eyes of many of us. He just walked into Eugene and immediately slapped around the Ducks who own Riley. I could cite plenty of other reasons justifying my position.
This upcoming USC/UCLA game figures to either get Riley off the hook for now, or sink him into a coaching morass he may never be able to climb out of.
I judge a team by how well is plays. And against Rutgers, the 4Q against Oregon, and against Washington, SC just stunk it up. Did not happen last night.
True frosh DE Luke Wafle had five tackles and a sack.
“That’s what we emphasize on the d-line, stop that run,” Wafle said. “You close that little section of their playbook and the game gets a lot more fun.”
USC outgained PSU 430 to 357, and star WR Trent Mosley gained 111 yds on nine catches after missing three games with a knee injury.
true but our pass defense…what defense? Why are the receivers always so open? and what up with the missed coverages? and tackling is that something these players even practice? or is it just film or at most flag football?
“One of my favorite wins as a head coach, no question,” beleaguered head coach Lincoln Riley told reporters. “For so many reasons … Nobody in the world gave a chance to come in and win those games, and we did it. We did it our way. Really proud of our team. We didn’t listen to all that you guys say on the outside. This group doesn’t really care.”
Star freshman receiver Trent Mosley (4; 9 receptions, 111 yards) made an immediate impact in his return after missing the last three games due to a knee injury. He scored the first touchdown of the game when Maiava flicked a 19-yard pass over the middle of the field to his outstretched body in the end zone.
What’s wrong with Redeaux? Is he out for the season? The guy is an outstanding RB. Also, Feaster looks like he has star written all over him.
The thoughts I’ve been having since Saturday: I am not in the “Riley outcoached Campbell” crowd. You can only get so much juice out of that late time-out forcing play. It was a good moment for sure. But Riley also put our team in a tough “two for one” situation at the end of the first half by winning the opening toss and not deferring like every other coach in the world (sans Sean McVay!). It’s hard enough on the road. He tried to mitigate that mistake with a disastrous failed onside kick attempt to start the second half (a… Read more »
Mark Sanchez reaches settlement in civil lawsuit filed by truck driver he allegedly assaulted and also pleads guilty in criminal case … Chuck Schilken (LAT) — Mark Sanchez has reached an agreement in principle to end the civil case against him filed by a truck driver who got into a physical altercation with the former USC and NFL quarterback last fall. Indiana resident Perry Tole filed the civil lawsuit against Sanchez and Fox Corp last October, alleging that he suffered “severe permanent disfigurement, loss of function, other physical injuries, emotional distress, and other damages” as a result of the incident… Read more »
I’ve been listening to the LAT House of Troy podcasts by Ryan Kartje. Four episodes have been released so far from Sept. 22 thru Oct. 13. They are outstanding and I would highly recommend them. I’ve learned a lot of amazing inside and enlightening details that you may discover have slipped between the cracks in this exhaustive and extremely well done expose about the recent history of USC football. Over 100 interviews were conducted for the show which took four years to produce. They are extremely well-produced by L.A. Times Studios and the narrative audio series itself is free and… Read more »
Chesney showed up on Colin Cowherd’s show today. Simple message: always put the team first. No exceptions. And always put your team-mates second, and you third. Bring in people who are very like-minded and cut from the same cloth. Don’t come to UCLA if you expect to be paid the most and unless you are willing to work hard enough to win the B1G championship very soon. Everybody matters, every coach, every staff, support or custodial member, every player, every single individual who contributes to Bruin football in any way — nobody is more important than anyone else. Discard all… Read more »
USC has 1066 yards gained in 7 games. UCLA has 1266 in 5 games. SC has to do something about their running game.
UCLA’s 5-7, 195 lb RB Wayne Knight is probably better than any RB USC has. He reminds me of Maurice Drew. Their blocking schemes are more downhill and the Bruin running game approach is different too. Much more focus on the ground attack.
You say “Much more focus on the ground attack”. In that sense, this new QB(Diffenbach) might help their running game. They say he is mobile. He ran for 300 yards last year. Of course, that was at Cal Poly….not exactly a juggernaut.
I figure UCLA’s gonna lean even more heavily on their running game going forward. The Bruins have no signature play-making WRs, but their defense is good. Their backup QBs just aren’t that impressive compared with Nico Iamaleava, who wasn’t always great by any means, but he was their clear best player at the position despite a penchant for turnovers. This is a huge setback for the charmed Chesney. UCLA has to play in Minneapolis and Ann Arbor. Not great opponents, but clearly losable games without their starting QB. And UCLA has no more byes, so it’s a rugged straight shot… Read more »
I sure do agree with you but for the life of me I cannot see what they can do to help with the run game. At this stage of the season they can’t change the offense blocking schemes to much. Other than the counter, they run up the gut. When they do run outside they seem to have some success, so I have to ask, why do they keep running up the middle? I would love to see Jonas come in and run the ball a couple of times during a game, then when we play Ohio St let him… Read more »
Inside College Football picks (CBS Sports Network)
#4 OHIO ST (three game losing streak to top 10 teams) at #5 IU (9 am PT/Fox)
Sportsline — IU 26-25
Aaron Taylor — OHIO ST — “IU can get after the QB. OHIO ST will win as long as they don’t get trapped into playing conservative small ball and they rely on Jeremiah Smith to make big plays.”
Rick Neuheisel — OHIO ST — “IU couldn’t run the ball against NEB.”
Brian Jones — OHIO ST — “IU QB Josh Hoover will throw his first pick of the season.”
Ryan Day will not take chances in big games until his team gets behind and has to open up. These sports line experts are assuming OSU has superior athletes that will expose the Hoosiers. They are not giving Cignetti’s team the respect his teams won’t beat themselves. Everyone is predicting Jeremiah Smith will make the difference in this matchup. He may be it. This could be a tight game to the end and go into overtime with both coaches playing it close to the cuff waiting for a fumble or pick to give them an advantage.
Talk about a can’t-miss game. I can’t wait to see it. The Legend of Curt Cignetti will be on full display in Bloomington at 9 am PT (Fox, Big Noon Kickoff game). What a battle this could be! Now it’s Bob Chesney who is viewed as the most current version of Cignetti. It’s utterly amazing that lightning in a bottle has struck twice in this manner in such a short time in CFB. Just last year we were all saying there would never be another Cignetti. Now, UCLA may already have another one. Of course Chesney still has a long… Read more »
I still say Beat the Irish! — even though we aren’t playing them until Aug 31, 2030 Stewart Mandel (The Athletic) — Remember when Notre Dame announced a trip to BYU as its replacement for USC (then the Trojans scheduled San Jose State)? It turned out to be both a schedule upgrade for the Irish and a historic moment for the Cougars, who next week will host the first-ever top-10 matchup at LaVell Edwards Stadium. No. 8 BYU (5-0) has a chance to make a statement for not just itself but its conference if it can knock off the third-ranked… Read more »
It could turn out that the best thing that ever happened to Lincoln Riley was Bob Chesney (the first Bruin coach to EVER start out 5-0). That’s a very complicated, seemingly nonsensical assertion, but the CFB game is now changed in L.A. UCLA’s suddenly a real threat. USC hasn’t had to seriously worry about this in years. Chip Kelly (only 35-34 at UCLA) actually went 3-3 vs USC, but he was able to take advantage of Gentleman Clay. Riley’s post game quotes after beating PSU reveal a coach who has clearly been stung very hard by the vocal USC fans… Read more »
There’s an edge rusher from Utah who is one of the better players in the country. He’s visited a number of schools already and he listed his top 3 schools so far. UCLA was mentioned first. I don’t know if that means he has them top of the list. SC is still trying to get a visit. It looks like it is no longer just Oregon we have to worry about in recruiting. But then again I wonder how much money the Bruins have to offer.
The Bruins are gonna be much, much more difficult to beat on the recruiting trail, as well as on the field. It’s been expressed here before that having UCLA better would improve the USC/UCLA rivalry and make the games more entertaining. Frankly, I’d rather just beat UCLA’s head in. In any case, there’s no hotter coach in the nation right now than Bob Chesney. He’s everywhere, in lights. That’s the way it goes when you take over a long-slumped big media market program and go 5-0 for the first time in your first year at the school that Wooden built.… Read more »
The podcasts this week are questioning the level talent PSU has this season. Even their coach hints this in post game remarks. Seems no is willing to give this win much credit including the AP poll. Many are also doubting USC can win 3 of the last 4 games of this season putting them in the playoff. Running the ball & defending the pass has got to improve quickly.
Ya, I don’t see USC winning four out of the last five — not in the real world. That’s why the loss to ORE in the Coliseum hurt so bad. As a Trojan we can all fantasize about USC getting super hot, going 4-1, and making the playoffs. Wouldn’t that be great?! But that would fly in the face of everything I’ve seen from all of USC’s final opponents. Nobody I’ve read in the media has USC pegged as a playoff team at this stage. If anyone can find even one, please let us all know exactly who that is.… Read more »
I’ve lost confidence in LR as a HC who can bring us an NC. I once hoped he would evolve into that kind of a coach. But I can’t help rooting for him. Judging by his emotions, he really does seem to want this job. I hope he succeeds.
I was in Philadelphia at an Air B&B Saturday night and was reduced to “listening” to the game because the owner didn’t even put basic cable on their TV (and our credentials didn’t work for peacock) so I spent a rainy Sunday afternoon catching “highlights” on YouTube. I thought we did a good job scoring, but barely okay on defense. Maiava is a Jeckle and Hyde quarterback at times brilliant and other times… did he really just do that? Without the talented freshmen core we have we would have been dead in the water IMO. Which brings me to my… Read more »
If I remember correctly, USC could not get out of its own way when NIL started, and that was a big part of the recruiting out of the portal. Then the current AD was scared to death of the ncaa while many other schools jumped in with money and pay to play got going. It is still pay to play, but the ncaa has given it some respectability. When Riley first came on board he told several players to hit the road, the channels to the old recruiting pipelines (like MD) were non existant because of Helton. Then along came… Read more »
USC never went even close to 11-1 under Lincoln Riley. You must be thinking about the 2022 11-3 year when UTAH beat USC twice (by a destruction derby score of 47-24 once), after which USC flopped big-time against unranked TUL and embarrassed themselves in a ridiculous 46-45 bowl loss. That was one of Riley’s worst coaching letdowns ever. I could go over numerous other failings of LR while at USC which you omitted that had nothing whatsoever to do with NIL, but these issues have already been covered at length for several years by every CFB or Trojan site in… Read more »
It was early, I was getting long and I figured all the stuff I didn’t write about was already known and been hashed over on here. I tried to simply hit some of the major points. But if you took exception to what I wrote, that is surely your priveledge. Yes 11-1 should have been corrected, thank you for that. The failings of Riley have been pretty well covered on here, I sure didn’t think I needed to repeat all that, it is a lot. I do agree Chesney has lit a fire under USC, I hope they have what… Read more »
Nobody said you should have said nothing. Certainly not me. In fact, I’ve always encouraged you to say whatever is on your mind in whatever way you want. But in your comment you specifically stated — “Please anyone, correct me if I am wrong somewhere.” That’s why I responded. So I corrected you because you had the record wrong and Riley’s never had an 11-1 season at USC. Season three was also a 7-6 disaster, Riley’s lowest point, and hardly deserving of any praise. Nobody’s ever asked you to keep a thing to yourself Steveg. And if you chose to,… Read more »
Thank you for your correction Allen.
I’m honestly sorry I said anything. I should have just let it all ride despite your request. Lesson learned.
I notice you significantly altered your post and deleted several statements after mine. I’m only pointing that out because your comment no longer includes things I specifically addressed. If this means you won’t be keeping future things to yourself, I’m very glad to hear that!
We need you around here Steveg. Always have.✌
I think you hit the nail on the head about Bowden. I think Jen also has some questions she should be asking Riley about some coaching mistakes he’s made in game management. Building is the key and the better we play in the meantime the better the building will go. I am sorry I took so long to respond to your answer. The boat we’re on lost power before we left port and the internet went down. I have read the back and forth on my question and can only say we have one of the best blog experiences around.… Read more »
Re-ranking 138 college football teams after Week 6: Prove-it time for ND, IU
4 OHIO ST
6 ND
7 IU
10 UCLA
20 IOWA
21 USC
23 NW
24 ORE
27 WIS
33 NEB
34 MINN
35 MICH
58 PUR
59 PSU
60 UW
67 ILL
80 MICH ST
87 MARYD
115 RUT
nytimes.com
Lincoln Riley — “I got a lot of problems, but being competitive ain’t one of them.” Haley Sawyer (OC Register) — USC has now won both of its road games after beating Rutgers in Piscataway in Week 3. The Trojans struggled on the road last season, going 2-3, and performed even worse in the 2024 season with a 1-4 record in away games. This season, USC started a new tradition of adding a small plaque themed after each road win to the new Bloom Football Performance Center. A new one was on the wall when the Trojans returned to campus.… Read more »
Trent Mosley Named B1G Freshman of the Week After Dominant Return at PSU LOS ANGELES — USC phenom WR Trent Mosley has been named the Big Ten Freshman of the Week after his dominant play in the Trojans’ 31-23 road victory over PSU. The Santa Margarita product returned after missing three games (RUT, ORE, UW) with a knee injury suffered against LOUISIANA. He quickly scored on a 19-yd throw from Jayden Maiava on USC’s opening drive in front of a record White Out crowd of 114,419 at Beaver Stadium. He had a game-high nine catches for 111 yds and… Read more »
We all knew that Bear Alexander was a knucklehead, and now the whole world knows. And F Dan Lanning, the most overrated coach in CF, who made it sound like his players never take cheap shots. He agreed to take Bear, knowing he had a million$ body and a 10 cent brain. They deserve each other. This year Oregon doesn’t have to worry about being embarrassed in the playoffs.
Ya, the Egg’s ALL over Dan Lanning’s face now. Double whammy. He thoroughly abuses USC and Lincoln Riley after beating the Trojans yet again but piling on with the dirty player comments and Chris Brown concert references.
Now UCLA kicks his butt hard core in Eugene and Bear Alexander comes off as a Duck on-the-field criminal in their latest weekend get up.
What goes around, comes around big Dan.
But too bad for UCLA about Nico Iamaleava and his torn ACL.
Waiting to see what the head duck has to say now. I wholly agree with PN4SC that Lanning is way over rated. A good salesman, but not coach. Someone ought to file battery charges against Bear, he is a complete idiot. Always was. Fines are appropriate.
With what ucla has for backups at Qb it could be the end of the season for them. Nico was having a good season.
“Worse Than the USC Player Hit on Dante Moore”: CFB Fans Rip Oregon DL Bear Alexander for “Throwing UFC Punches” on UCLA’s Nico Iamaleava
Yahoo Sports
Nico Iamaleava is out for the season thanks to Bear Alexander’s intentional cheap shot during ORE’s 17-15 loss to UCLA.
Alexander should be fined and suspended but neither ORE nor the B1G have the guts to do it — yet. But now that Nico has been ruled out for the year, we’ll see.
Tough blow for UCLA and Chesney for sure on an unsportsmanlike play.
The blow to the head did not take out Nico but it was a cheap shot and Bear should at least be suspended for a game like Stevens. Too bad he seemed to have found his home after some drama. Cinderella may have lost her slipper. Poor Ruins maybe good for USC.
What’s your position on players now being fined for egregious unsportsmanlike conduct on the field?
Now that they are making huge NIL money plus $ from schools in many instances, wouldn’t this be appropriate? Or do you think they should still be shielded from that punishment, even though that’s probably the one thing that would really inhibit outlandishly dangerous and reprehensible conduct?
I’m for fines if a player receives any NIL compensation, in addition to game expulsion and suspension. It’s probably the only thing that hurts them…the wallet, that is.
Everybody on the team is getting some part of the school revenue share of $15 million. They are semi pros and need to act like it. What ever the NFL model is would be good. I think that would have to come from at least the conference level to be fair.
I think it should be a fine for any unsportsmanlike, unnecessary roughness, targeting, roughing the passer, blocks below the knee, facemask and horse collary tackles, and blocks in the back. Coaches should be able to be fined also, not just the HC but all. Regulated by the nzaa of course.
I’m on board with that. The only weakness in the plan is “regulated by the nzaa”. Even the NFL struggles with consistent application of discipline. There’s no hope the nzaa could ever do it in any way other than poorly.
I agree. The NCAA should have no power. It’s a thoroughly corrupt, venal organization. Abolish it. Replace it with some other guard-railed, limited authority unifier organization.
For some reason it really seems that won’t happen any time very soon. It may, eventually, and this could be one of the straws that breaks that camels back. Until then…?
How do you get uniformity across all the conferences? I can see the SEC being the one to hold out for some ridiculous reason with espn backing them.
Probably another hopeless pursuit as conferences struggle with uniformity now. SEC just this year adding 9th conference game, for example. I think it has to be the conference commissioners working it out among themselves.
I have to give props to Riley, because he did something I didn’t think he was capable of. Namely, prepare a team to play clean, focused football despite having to travel multiple time zones, in a hostile environment. I know Penn State is pretty average, but this is a game USC loses any of the last several years. I hope we have turned a corner. The Wisconsin game will be very revealing.
Agree PN4SC, ready to play an east coast game, success attacking what was supposed to be a good pass defense (#3 in the nation), 3 penalties for 25 yds, forced PSU to use up TOs, got defensive stops at the end, ran out the clock. Not what we’ve seen from Riley in the past. I was hoping to see this August 29 or even September 26, but I’ll take it. Yes, Penn St is essentially an average Big12 team and Wisconsin will be a different beast. But there was progress in team and coaching attitude and composure. Hope this week… Read more »
I think we are all in the same frame of mind. If the Trojans can show up against W like they did against Penn State and beat them on the road, then we are not looking at the same LR who went 2-3 on the road last year and 1-4 the year before. He will actually be 3-0 on the road.
I agree. I do not know why folks are downplaying what happened. Do you think Sarkesian would have downplayed beating a mediocre OK team if TX has won by 8? Is NE really that much better than Penn State that Indiana getting a victory over them in a very hostile environment was not worthwhile? I remember Oregon beating a Penn State team that went 7-6 in a White Out game and being praised. This was probably Riley signature win so far in his career (the response will be – so what? Let him beat an elite team and then talk… Read more »
Yes, NEB is a lot better than PSU. The Huskers had actually taken control of the game at home over IU in the 4th Q and were poised to literally beat the national champs. I don’t know anyone who thinks USC is superior to IU, though there may be one or two people in the world who believe this. Undoubtedly, this PSU win is Riley’s best win ever at USC. That’s mainly because he has no others, unless you count beating a 4-loss IOWA team last year in the Coliseum as a massive accomplishment. That was literally Riley’s high water… Read more »
We both watch the same game with Nebraska/Indiana. It was a great game. I do believe Nebraska played over their heads in that one, it was their super bowl game. Perhpas they will prove me wrong, and I’m okay with that, I would love to see Nebraska become dominant again. Indiana can be beat I think, and Ohio St is going to do it.
It was a GREAT game. NEB was playing out of their minds. They’ve been waiting for this win forever, having lost 30 straight games to ranked teams.
Then IU showed their true colors and stole the game back, while playing away. That’s quite an accomplishment in a place like Lincoln and IU’s QB is no where near as good as Fernando Mendoza. I agree, IU is beatable.
But I don’t think USC will beat them in Bloomington and we have to to make the playoffs, because I think the Buckeyes nail USC in L.A.
So looks like Oregon is the team getting grief from a cheap shot to the QB. It seems Bear Alexander took a swing to the head when Nico was down. UCLA may be without Iamaleava for some time with a leg injury. UCLA’s backup QB went 3 of 6 for 43 yds and a TD and a 13 yd sack. Could be trouble for the Ruins. Nebraska gave Indy all it could handle, Wisconsin beat PSU by only 4. Outside of Ohio St the B1G could be wide open week to week.
Dan Lanning’s famous last words directed to USC. Eat it Lanning and you “disgusting” Ducks.
“It’s a disgusting play. You don’t want to see it happen. It’s disappointing that it happened.”
Excellent post, there is nothing that can be said after that.
Never cared for Bear Alexander. I saw this play on replay and thought that Bear should have been thrown out of the game.
Absolutely. He’s a thug and he was horrible at USC. ORE and Lanning should be ashamed of themselves, especially after what Lanning said about USC’s program.
You mean Dan(Al Davis) Lanning…..“just win baby. whatever it takes”. I think Jim Harbaugh has a little of that in him too.
ORE could lose 4-5 games if they aren’t careful. USC may have lost to the Ducks, but UCLA shattered Raiola’s confidence (I would think), and without Dante Moore (concussion), the Ducks could get beat by NEB, NW, OHIO ST and MICH. So sad.
If UCLA can get their QB back healthy, I think that they will make the playoffs. Look at the teams that they still have left…..Wisconsin, MSU, Nevada, Minnesota Illinois, Michigan and USC. Of those, I only see 3 real threats(if UCLA has their QB)…..Wisconsin, Michigan and USC. If they can win 2 out of those 3 games, they will only have one loss and surely they will be chosen. If they don’t get their QB back, they’re in trouble because they really don’t have a solid 2nd string QB. Ty Diffenbach threw for 1300 yards with 9 TD’s and 9… Read more »
If UCLA does make the playoffs(and USC doesn’t make it) and beats USC in the final game of the year, they fans will be irate. So if I was Jen Cohen I would start my search for a new HC.
Do you think she will?
I don’t know. I can’t get inside Jen Cohens head.
I sincerely doubt Jen wants to move into the world of a big-time CFB coach hunt. That’s a space that’s fraught with danger and expense.
She’s desperately hoping that Lincoln Riley can do well enough to not completely make it impossible for her to keep him.
She’s stuck with LR like we all are. We’ll see how she feels after the OHIO ST, WIS, IU and UCLA games. If LR loses three out of those four, the vast majority of USC fans will be very pissed. Especially if Chesney beats him on Nov. 28.
I wonder what she would do if we lose all 4 of those games…..go 7-5….and UCLA makes the playoffs…..and at the same time there is a proven great coach out there that is sending out feelers that he wants the job.
“A proven great coach out there that is sending out feelers he wants the job.” I just don’t see that happening. And if it were happening, I think it would leak out and we’d hear about it. People talk. They can’t help it, especially when they want to make news, make a point, or make trouble. And Jen Cohen’s operating in a super tough environment. Not only does USC still owe LR a bank vault of money that would be hugely difficult to absorb, but USC still feels stung by the fact that it hired and overpaid an over-rated, ill-fitting… Read more »
I think we know who the elites are and they aren’t leaving. Then maybe in the middle of the Power 4 pack there is a guy who is a bad fit where he’s at and would be at USC, doubt it. Maybe bottom of the Power 4 that is good but lacks resources, no idea who. Best bet would be a Cignetti, Chesney type, a Group of 6 winner where ever he goes.
Can’t argue with that. I’d consider directly asking Cignetti, Smart, Day, Freeman, Saban and Chesney who they would hire and ask them to name only one guy. One single guy who they’ve either coached with, against, or just heard about through the grapevine as an up-and-comer who has what it takes to run a huge program where winning big is required. That’s my pipe dream answer. But I agree. I’d go for a guy amongst a 10-15 coach pool who impressed my expert search committee (yes, I would have one that was attached to USC in some spots, not just… Read more »
We really did catch lightning in a bottle with Pete C. Pete had it all including a personality that was a perfect fit for USC that could have possibly dreamt of. What a great motivator, culture builder, hard-nosed, charismatic leader he was.
Ya, Pete Carroll was an amazing luxury for us USC fans to experience. He was so confident, engaging, creative, and upbeat, yet inside lived a never-give-up killer who would just as soon beat your head in. Fight On! He repped it so well.
Maybe I should go back to my old way of thinking….that he will evolve into a great coach….since we are stuck with this guy. Another possibility is let’s go out and hire a great O and D line coach. Our O-Line is good when it comes to pass blocking but mediocre when it comes to run blocking. NW gained 413 yards against PSU. We gained 129. Also….all I heard before the season started was how we had one of the best D-lines in the country. So far we have 15 sacks in 7 games. There are 33 teams that have… Read more »
IMO, 3 scenarios with outcomes are:
UCLA’s in a lot of trouble IMO without Nico Iamaleava based on what I saw of backup Ty Dieffenbach.
They have nothing at QB behind Nico….a bunch of 3 stars. They do have one 4 star…..his brother Madden but I guess they don’t have much confidence in him because they only used him a few plays in the Oregon game.
Two things stand out from last night’s game. First Riley managed to eat up some of the clock two ways. When Penn State had a late offensive substitution USC sent in their own substitution which forced Penn State to take a time out. It’s a quirky rule which USC had actually been burned with. Riley found out how to pull the stunt to his advantage. Then he slowed the offense down working up the field with run plays and took time off the clock. (It didn’t hurt that Penn State used their last time out after an incomplete pass which… Read more »
My two cents…. All around great effort….. USC just went into a game 3 time zones east of LA and played in front of a historic home crowd. Rocco played very well, which he was not doing in prior games. Maiava played well. Turnovers were not prevalent. It was a solid win against a struggling team. Is the door open for a surprise win against one of the elites……yes. To expect 5-0 is a long reach. To think 4-1 could happen is unlikely but possible. To expect 3-2 is reasonable. Riley is still Riley but this team with Maiava’s speed… Read more »
illinoisusc — How do you get around the fast that PSU is a crap 3-3 team with wins only against pure cupcakes and already two losses at home with a new coach? Or do you just not believe that? Do you think PSU is secretly a good club despite the fact they haven’t received a single solitary vote from either the media or the coaches?
Struggling means struggling. They have some talent………..proven coaching…..but…..it sure has not been put together yet…..will it….who knows.
Are they secretly a good club……not now.
However…..USC struggled against Rutgers…..this was a solid win in a white out.
I don’t believe Campbell has proven at all that he is a solid coach in the B1G. Not yet. We’ll all have to see about that, but the jury is for sure still out on that one. I’d like to poll PSU fans about their opinion on that. He could turn out to be very average for all we know.
I still say when USC played PSU last night, they were a crap team. Sometimes you get the luck of the draw. We deserved a break and we got one which we took advantage of. Good for the Trojans!
OK, so what you’re saying is that the Trojans have played nothing but crap this year. Not one good team. After all Oregon just got beat by UCLA at home.
Do we go 1-4 the rest of the way? Call it!
Unfortunately, you’re correct, except ORE is good. But an even better UCLA team (without its starting QB) took it to them. If you want to point out the excellence of any of the other teams we’ve played so far, I’m all ears. So we lost to the one good team we’ve played. Most of us all even predicted that. And we all know that the schedule really begins now. OHIO ST and IU look like objective losses to me. UCLA’s a toss-up in the Rose Bowl and a can’t miss L.A. event. We go 2-3 or 3-2 the rest of… Read more »
So 8-4 or 9-3. As for Oregon, did they get beat or beat themselves. Seven turnovers. A QB that placed pin point passes against us could not hit the broad side of a barn. Two point win with SEVEN turnovers. What good team commits 7 turnovers. Let’s face it…..and I’am having a hard time with it…..The BIG this year…..not so hot. Maybe O State wins it all but I doubt it. UCLA is running thru a pile of crap….so is USC. Indiana is ok, but you and I called it…..Hoover ain’t no Mendoza. We could take them. I know you… Read more »
I watched the entire UCLA/ORE game. IMO, UCLA beat the hell out of the Ducks. They really pounded them, especially on D, and directly caused some of those TOs. Their QB got spooked and lost all of his confidence before he got benched. UCLA’s D was the big surprise here. ORE couldn’t sustain ANY drives for the first three quarters. The game wasn’t nearly as close as the score. The Bruins missed so many opportunities. I give IU more credit than you do for coming back to win in Lincoln. 90% of the teams that had fallen behind like the… Read more »
He’s got a bunch of Big 12 players.
Yes it was a win over a struggling team. Just the same this game has been targeted as a Whiteout and in prime time TV making it important for this PSU team to play its heart out for a win. For Our Trojan team, it can take congrats & lessons learned during this bye week.
Do you believe PSU was any more inclined to play its heart out than USC? I don’t. Each team was reeling, knowing that a loss would drop it into complete oblivion.
USC played its heart out and deservedly won. Super effort, plus we were obviously more talented, plus we have Trent Mosley. Thank god for that!
The Coaches like USC a little more … but I wouldn’t rank USC over IOWA. No way based on their games against UW.
The Associated Press rankings carry more weight than polls like the Coaches Poll and FWAA Poll, as they are part of the deciding factor in which teams reach the College Football Playoff. The Coaches Poll, which is not part of the College Football Playoff selection committee’s formula to determine the four teams that will compete for the College Football Playoff National Championship, is voted on by 65 FBS head coaches.
AP Top 25 rankings
1. Georgia
2. Notre Dame
3. Miami (Fla.)
4. Ohio State
5. Indiana
6. Alabama
7. Texas
8. BYU
9. Ole Miss
10. Texas Tech
11. Utah
12. UCLA
13. Missouri
14. Tennessee
15. Kentucky
16. Mississippi State
17. Iowa
18. Oklahoma State
19. USC
20. Houston
21. Wake Forest
22. LSU
23. Boise State
24. SMU
25. Northwestern
Other Receiving Votes: Wisconsin 92, Oregon 86, Arizona 82, Nebraska 65, Oklahoma 44, James Madison 29, Florida 9, Duke 5, New Mexico 3, Oregon State 1
All that earlier talk we had about polls. USC holds #19 at 6-1 even though they lost to Oregon, previous #13 Oregon now 3-2 is GONE. USC has to continue to improve week to week to get in the hunt. Riley was a better coach last night.
Better than who? Riley wasn’t a better coach than Chesney. Riley wasn’t a better coach than Venables, or at least 15-20 other coaches.
Riley was better than Riley. 😀 He took his USC team to the east coast and won. No dumb mistakes. Made some strategic decisions. The onside kick attempt, had it worked, would have killed Penn St. So I give Riley credit for last night. He turned the hot seat down a notch is all. He needs to continue to improve.
Ya, lots of plays would be great — if only they worked! 😂 😂
All kidding aside, we both made our points. Compared to many other coaches, Riley wasn’t any better than lots of them. But compared to himself, it was a very good night.
The USC players went to see the movie Heart of the Beast before the game, starring Brad Pitt and his amazing dog. I highly recommend that flick. Very inspirational!
CURRENT STANDINGS 10.11.2026
Patrick9 35500BUS83 26000SatyrDancing 24000Scoochnew 23000Tomme Trojan 20000GoldenTrojan 20000LeftCAnotSC 20000Section120A 19000Mrs Steveg 16000TrojanRJJ 16000BDub78 15500DubPar22 14000
Click on the link below to view the post with the individual game by game accounting.
CLICK HERE
I got back to even on 1/2 a point!
It’s amazing how often that half-point makes a difference and can you imagine how much difference it makes to someone who might have had $50 on that total.
Congratulations for being on the right side of that pick!!
Ducks’ Trojan horse. This time, the joke’s on ORE … Haley Sawyer (OCR) — Oregon’s duck mascot took a shot at USC during his pregame entrance before Saturday’s UCLA game. It entered Autzen Stadium inside a wooden Trojan Horse prop that had a red tongue comically sticking out of its mouth. The duck jumped out of the back of the horse with a sword and shield, with the song “Old Town Road” playing. It waved them around before running back into the tunnel. USC lost to Oregon, 41-27 on Sept. 26, and the Ducks (thankfully) ended up losing to… Read more »
Lincoln Riley says that he doesn’t pay any attention to the chants by the fans. I think in his head this is a sign of strength, focus but it’s not. It’s his unwillingness to learn and see the stupidity in what he does. And he’s cherishing the away victory but this is a very bad Penn State, so let’s not get too excited there, champ. Yes we played better with less penalties and there is reason to believe we can finish with a 8-4 season and maybe go to a bowl and win, maybe? But I’m going to be honest… Read more »
After what I saw this week, USC will not beat IU and OHIO ST. UCLA is a rivalry toss-up at the Rose Bowl. With Trent Mosley, or best player even though he is a true freshman, we have a shot at beating the Bruins. Without him, who knows? He’s so big for USC! What a player. Some of the plays he made yesterday were just stupendous.
Did not see this one coming. I cannot recall LR coaching like this before. He was really into the game and extremely fired up. And the team played well. LR shredded the #1 pass defense in the B1G. Our D is an issue, but it was not a dumpster fire like it was at say Rutgers. This game was critical for Penn State. White out, with what I I understand was the largest crowd in Penn State history (over 114,000). Look at Penn State’s remaining games: at MI, Purdue at home, at Washington, Minnesota at home, Rutgers at home, and… Read more »
Feels wide open doesn’t it? Gonna be fun.
It is highly unlikely that this SC team makes the CFP. The schedule for 4 of the last 5 games is brutal. At Wisconsin, Ohio State, at Indiana, and at UCLA. The only break is Maryland at home. SC should be underdogs in 4 of the remaining 5 and double digit underdogs to both Ohio State and Indiana. Look at UCLA’s schedule: they play Wisconsin at home (tough game), Mich.State at home (certain victory), Nevada at home (scrimmage), at Minnesota (should win), Illinois at home (should win), at MI (should win), and then against us. Their toughest game prior to… Read more »
USC would never beat ORE in Eugene like UCLA did, even though they lost their starting QB early. UCLA deserves the better rank now.
Totally agree. UCLA, if it beats Wisconsin, should be a top 10 team and a favorite to for the CFP.
WIS is turning out to be kind of a mystery team. For those who think ND lacks cred, they slaughtered the Badgers 41-13.
I’m thinking USC v WIS is gonna be a very tough game for both teams.
One thing that hurts the most is ucla will probably be ranked above USC in todays poll. It is just a poll by a group of biased voters.
Why would media pollsters be biased in favor of UCLA over USC? I don’t believe that’s true at all.
The only 2 undefeated teams in the B1G are Indiana and SUCLA?! Who would have guessed? USC could still need a win over Ruins to get a playoff spot. It feels wide open, a lot of parity happening in college football. SEC are beating each other up. Will USC 6-1 be ranked ahead of 3-2 Oregon?
Who would you vote for to be ahead of the other? ORE, or USC.
I don’t see how you can bump USC above. We beat a mediocre 3-3 PSU team with no good wins and ORE lost to a good UCLA team after beating us by double digits at the Coliseum with their 2nd string QB.
I always think the head to head match ups should count. So I would put Oregon over USC. But the polls seem to only look at wins and losses not who they play. Just look at ND. Oregon should have won if not for Lanning constant desire to go for 2. We’ll see if ND is for real next week at BYU.
ND’s pretty good IMO. Not great. But top 10 for sure. I know a lot of people here hate the Irish. Nothing wrong with that. Do you expect BYU to beat ND in Provo? Could happen.
Should be a good game to watch. BYU could do it. ND has that win over a pretty good Wisconsin.
The Irish only play three good teams all year. The question becomes, if they lose twice, do they get shut out of the playoffs — yet again.
I have nothing to point to, but, for example, I doubt BYU could have beaten Penn State last night at Penn State. We will see.
Oh, I think BYU would have easily beaten PSU. I’m not impressed at all with the 3-3 Nits. They’ve only been able to beat cupcakes and just because they have a big name doesn’t transfer over to any brownie points for me. JMHO.
As I said, I have nothing to point to.
I was just wondering why you would doubt that undefeated BYU would beat PSU? Interesting.
I would rank both OR and UCLA ahead of SC right now. While beating Penn State was an accomplishment for the Trojans, I think both OR and UCLA have shown themselves to be better teams than SC.
Oregon was better than USC 2 weeks ago. Not so sure now.
How did ORE get worse so fast?
QB problems, sure. But both ORE QBs hammered USC. UCLA’s pretty darn good. That was the Ducks’ problem. UCLA could actually make the playoffs.
UCLA stuffed Oregon’s run game, 73 yards. UCLA could very well be that good.
The team with the most returning experience in the B1G is UCLA; the team with the least is USC. Chesney brought in a ton of experience.
Chesney’s a better overall coach than Riley, at least in the eyes of many of us. He just walked into Eugene and immediately slapped around the Ducks who own Riley. I could cite plenty of other reasons justifying my position.
This upcoming USC/UCLA game figures to either get Riley off the hook for now, or sink him into a coaching morass he may never be able to climb out of.
I’m going to go with FIRE Riley now
Chesney’s team will be gone at the end of the season, all seniors and grads mostly
Chesney wins big wherever he goes. Fact. That’s why UCLA hired him.
His team is already ranked above and better regarded nationwide than Lincoln Riley’s, though many would say that’s not saying much.
Chesney’s the talk of college football. Lincoln’s the talk of CFB hot seat followers.
The answer is simple USC’s D backs aren’t really ready for prime time
For me, they won the head to head. I think UCLA is a better team than Penn State, so I would still rank them ahead of us.
This was a win where when I woke up this morning it didn’t seem like a loss. Totally convincing win, and it sure is nice to have Mosely back.
I judge a team by how well is plays. And against Rutgers, the 4Q against Oregon, and against Washington, SC just stunk it up. Did not happen last night.
Great D against the run …
PSU gained just 68 yds on 31 carries (2.2 ypc).
True frosh DE Luke Wafle had five tackles and a sack.
“That’s what we emphasize on the d-line, stop that run,” Wafle said. “You close that little section of their playbook and the game gets a lot more fun.”
USC outgained PSU 430 to 357, and star WR Trent Mosley gained 111 yds on nine catches after missing three games with a knee injury.
true but our pass defense…what defense? Why are the receivers always so open? and what up with the missed coverages? and tackling is that something these players even practice? or is it just film or at most flag football?