LOS ANGELES -- USC found its way back into the win column Saturday night in the Coliseum, grinding out a 25-21 win over Washington in a game that never settled into anything comfortable for either side.
Afterward, head coach Lincoln Riley, defensive lineman Jahkeem Stewart and quarterback Jayden Maiava met with reporters, and Riley made clear how much his team had to absorb to come out on top. He said he was proud of the Trojans for pushing through the chaos, especially in stretches when USC looked better statistically but still trailed on the scoreboard.
The penalties were a major part of that mess. USC was flagged nine times for 94 yards, and Riley said the timing made the damage even worse. He pointed to a facemask penalty that wiped out a big sack and an illegal formation call that erased a touchdown, describing those as the kind of mistakes that can’t happen if a team expects to keep winning.
Riley also explained the move to send defensive coordinator Gary Patterson to the press box rather than keep him on the field. That idea came up Sunday after the Oregon loss, and the staff decided Patterson, as the person who knows the defense best, would be in the best position with an overhead view.
Stewart’s biggest moment came on a fumble return for a touchdown, and he didn’t spend much time breaking it down. He said he grabbed the ball and took it to the end zone at 22 miles per hour, which drew laughs from the room. Riley quickly followed with a joke of his own, saying that if Stewart really hit 22 MPH, then the Catapult system would need to be checked.
In Other News...
USC Fans Have Plenty To Debate After That Gritty Washington Win
The heat was no joke, and neither was USCs defense in a 25-21 win over Washington that gave the Trojans plenty to feel good about and even more to debate. Against the kind of grind-it-out test that can expose a team in September, USCs pass rush came through with four sacks, multiple tackles for loss and a sack-fumble recovery that turned into a touchdown, the sort of sequence that can swing a close game and change the feel of a night.
For a team ranked No. 18, the result mattered just as much as the details, and there were enough of both to keep fans talking well after the final whistle. The game offered a useful look at individual performances and how USCs defensive plan held up in tough conditions, but it also left room for questions about which players are emerging, which adjustments are working and how sustainable this kind of gritty win might be as the schedule moves on. [Read more 🡒]
Jayden Maiava's Rough Start Put USC's Offense Under A Harsh Spotlight
Jayden Maiavas afternoon against Washington put USCs offense under a harsh spotlight, as the Trojans spent much of the first half searching for any kind of rhythm. The quarterbacks decision-making and mechanics were both under scrutiny, and a series of poor throws, long holds in the pocket and drive-killing penalties left the offense looking flat when it needed to be sharp.
Maiava finished the half 12 of 19 for 143 yards, but the numbers only told part of the story as USC went to the locker room trailing 14-10. The Trojans still had time to settle in, but the opening half raised real questions about whether the offense could clean itself up quickly enough to change the tone of the game. [Read more 🡒]
USC Defense Escaped Washington After One Brutal Breakdown
USCs defense came out of Washington with a win, but not without a few uneasy moments that will linger in the film room. In a 25-21 victory over the Huskies, the Trojans had the kind of mixed outing that can leave a staff thankful for the result and still frustrated by the details, from a costly missed-tackle sequence that opened the door for a long touchdown to the kind of timely response that kept the game from slipping away.
Jahkeem Stewarts fumble return for a score gave USC a huge lift, and Kameryn Crawford made key defensive plays late to help secure the finish. Even so, Washington had chances behind Demond Williams Jr. and Chris Lawson, and the combination of injuries and breakdowns made this one feel closer than the Trojans would have preferred, with one brutal lapse standing out in a game they still managed to escape. [Read more 🡒]