USC’s win over Penn State in the fourth quarter turned on more than just Christian Pierce’s forced fumble and the Trojans’ game-sealing recovery. Before that sequence ever arrived, Lincoln Riley pulled off a clever little piece of misdirection that got everybody looking twice.
The setup came after Jayden Maiava missed freshman receiver Trent Mosley on third down, leaving USC facing fourth and four from its own 13-yard line. Instead of simply sending out a standard punt unit, the Trojans made a substitution that kept Maiava, running back Riley Wormley, receivers Ethan Feaster and Tanook Hines, and the offensive linemen on the field.
Then punter Lachlan Carrigan entered the formation - but not as a punter. He lined up to Maiava’s right with the receivers.
That was enough to create chaos on the Penn State sideline and among the players on the field. Even the NBC broadcast crew of Noah Eagle and Todd Blackledge needed a moment to sort out what they were seeing.
“Would they possibly think about going for this?” Eagle questioned during the broadcast.
As the play clock kept draining, Penn State’s Matt Campbell burned his final timeout.
Riley appeared to enjoy the result immediately, smirking once the stoppage came. And from USC’s perspective, the call worked exactly as designed: it forced Penn State to spend a timeout on a situation where the Trojans were deep in their own territory and never really looked like a team that would gamble on going for it.
Penn State’s handling of the moment was messy. The Nittany Lions had sent out their special teams group while USC still had most of its offensive personnel on the field, and by the time the defense sorted through the alignment, the timeout was already gone. Some Penn State players on the field seemed to be searching for answers as the formation unfolded.
In the end, the tactical wrinkle didn’t decide the game by itself. USC still punted after the timeout, and Penn State got the ball back. But two plays later, Pierce’s forced fumble flipped the finish for good, allowing the Trojans to recover, run out the clock, and leave with a 31-23 win.
Riley had cast the line. Campbell bit.
In Other News...
USC QB Publicly Stands Up For Lincoln Riley As Pressure Builds
As USC tries to steady itself after a rough stretch, Jayden Maiava has made it clear he is not buying into the noise around Lincoln Riley. The quarterback spoke up publicly on a podcast, backing his coach at a time when the criticism has only intensified and the Trojans are looking for some sense of footing. It was the kind of remark that tends to travel fast inside a program, especially when pressure is already hanging over the staff and the results have not matched the expectations.
Maiava said the outside criticism can serve as motivation for the group, a stance that fits the broader mood around a team trying to push through scrutiny rather than retreat from it. Riley, for his part, recently praised Maiavas poise and confidence in the Penn State game, a sign that the quarterbacks voice and presence carry real weight in the locker room. Whether that support is enough to quiet the bigger questions around the program is another matter, but it is clear the conversation around USC is not going away anytime soon. [Read more 🡒]
Lincoln Riley Sees One USC Issue That Still Needs Fixing
USC came away from its 31-23 win over Penn State with plenty to like, but Lincoln Riley is still treating the running game as a work in progress as the Trojans head toward their next road test at Wisconsin. There were useful stretches on the ground, yet Riley made it clear the offense has room to grow there, even with the confidence the players around that unit have shown in the backs and the offensive line.
The timing could work in USCs favor, with the bye week offering a chance to get healthier and sharpen the parts of the offense that have not yet settled in. For a team trying to build on a big win and carry it into conference play, the ground attack remains one of the cleaner areas to keep watching, especially once the Trojans get back to game speed in Madison. [Read more 🡒]
USC Just Put Its Playoff Hopes On The Line Again
USCs win at Penn State has kept the playoff conversation alive, and it is the kind of result that can change the temperature around a program in a hurry. ESPN College GameDay host Rece Davis said he still believes the Trojans can push their way into the College Football Playoff picture alongside Ohio State and Indiana, pointing to the difficulty of getting a road win in that environment and the way the Big Ten race is shaping up.
The road ahead is where USCs case gets tested for real. Wisconsin, Ohio State, Indiana, Maryland and UCLA are still on the schedule, and each one carries its own weight as the Trojans try to prove this is more than a one-game surge. In a conference where every week seems to reshape the playoff chase, USC has given itself a seat at the table, but the next stretch will decide whether it stays there. [Read more 🡒]