No. 12 USC walked into the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and came out with a 41-27 loss to No. 20 Oregon, and the game exposed a familiar problem for Lincoln Riley’s team: when things tightened up, the Trojans leaned away from the run and put too much pressure on the rest of the operation.
King Miller finished with 13 carries for 74 yards, and Waymond Jordan added eight carries for 36 yards. Both backs had runs that kept drives alive, but USC still drifted from the ground game once the pace picked up. That left the defense back on the field over and over again, and Oregon’s tempo eventually wore the Trojans down.
The USC crowd showed up for this one. The stadium had already sold out on Sept. 16, and game day brought plenty of noise long before kickoff.
Fans made their feelings known as Oregon came out of the tunnel, then stayed loud throughout the night. The atmosphere peaked early when USC’s defense forced Oregon to settle for a field goal on the Ducks’ first trip into the red zone.
The crowd also showed class when Oregon quarterback Dante Moore was carted off the field.
USC’s secondary remained a problem. In the first half, the Trojans surrendered four big first-down plays, and Johnson almost had another 30-plus-yard catch before an offensive holding penalty erased it. Oregon piled up 140 passing yards and a touchdown before halftime, and the explosives kept coming after the break.
On the second play of Oregon’s first drive in the third quarter, Hill turned a screen into a 62-yard gain, then later scored on the ground to push the Ducks ahead 20-10. The third-down damage kept adding up, too, and the knockout blow came on a 29-yard touchdown pass from Dylan Raiola to Dakorien Moore that made it 34-27. Oregon finished with 366 passing yards and two touchdowns through the air.
There were positives up front for USC. After getting shoved around for 168 rushing yards and two touchdowns against Rutgers, the Trojans’ defensive front played with more force.
Jordan Davison’s 45-yard run was the biggest the Ducks managed all night, and after that, every yard was earned. USC gave up 93 rushing yards in the half, and near the end of the first half the defense dug in and forced Dan Lanning to settle for a field goal.
The rotation also held its own at times. Luke Wafle, Kameryn Crawford, Jide Abasiri and Alex VanSumeren were all taken out at one point, and the backups held steady.
Jahkeem Stewart’s return mattered, Jamaal Jarrett was important in the goal-line stand, and Braylan Shelby made several solid plays. Still, the defense was asked to keep answering the bell, and eventually there just wasn’t enough left.
The roughest moment came with the ejection of linebacker Eric Gentry. Moore had already started to slide when Stephens came in hot, and the aftermath only made things worse.
Stephens’ actions on the field and on the sideline reflected badly on him and on the teammates who celebrated with him. Beyond the ejection, he could also face a suspension or other punishment from Lincoln Riley.
Even in defeat, Kayden Dixon-Wyatt continued to be one of USC’s most reliable pieces. With Trent Mosley out, the Trojans had used their receiver depth against Rutgers, but Dixon-Wyatt remained the constant. He caught five passes for 77 yards in Week 3 and carried that momentum into this game, becoming Jayden Maiava’s go-to option for chunk plays, chain-moving catches and USC’s first touchdown.
By halftime, the true freshman had five receptions for 88 yards and a score. He finished with seven catches for 114 yards and a touchdown.
In Other News...
USC Now Faces One Costly Question After The Oregon Loss
The loss to Oregon left USC with more than just a mark in the standings. In a top-20 showdown that ended 41-27, the Trojans got production from a few key places, including wide receiver Kayden Dixon-Wyatt, who paced the offense with seven catches for 114 yards and a touchdown, and running back King Miller, who added 74 rushing yards. On defense, Jahkeem Stewart was back in the lineup, giving USC another body in a game that demanded everything.
Desman Stephens IIs ejection for targeting added another layer to an already costly afternoon, especially after the hit that injured Oregon quarterback Dante Moore. USC has spent enough time this season trying to piece together consistency, and games like this tend to sharpen the bigger question around discipline and availability as much as execution. The Trojans left with the more immediate concern of what the loss means in the moment, but also with the kind of looming issue that can shape the next stretch if it is not cleaned up quickly. [Read more 🡒]
Mike Locksley Is Suddenly In A Conversation Maryland Fans Dread
Week 4 brought a fresh round of anxiety to the coaching carousel, and Marylands Mike Locksley suddenly finds himself in the kind of conversation Terrapin fans have been trying to avoid. A rough loss has turned the spotlight on a coach who entered the season with expectations attached and now sits in a crowded group of Power Four leaders feeling the heat, with the calendar still early enough for things to change but late enough for every slip to matter.
Locksley is hardly alone in that uneasy space, with South Carolinas Shane Beamer, Florida States Mike Norvell and Colorados Deion Sanders among the names drawing scrutiny after a difficult weekend. For Maryland, the concern is less about one bad afternoon than what it signals about the trajectory ahead, and the next stretch of games will say plenty about whether the noise around Locksley is just a bad week or the start of a much louder debate. [Read more 🡒]
Lincoln Riley Faces A USC Decision Fans Can't Ignore
The hit that sent Oregon quarterback Dante Moore to the hospital during USCs game against Oregon has put Desman Stephens and the Trojans in the middle of an ugly moment that has lingered well beyond the final whistle. Stephens celebrated after the collision and showed no remorse, and the reaction was swift, with calls growing for USC to suspend or dismiss him from the football program.
Lincoln Riley now faces the kind of decision that reaches beyond one player and into the standards of the program itself. The episode has sharpened questions about accountability and the culture around USC football, because this is no longer just about a controversial play, but about what the Trojans are willing to tolerate when the spotlight turns harsh. [Read more 🡒]