Lincoln Riley enters this week with his USC future under a harsh spotlight, and the pressure has only intensified after a rough loss to Oregon and the fallout that followed. According to LA Times staff writer Ryan Kartje, “All options are on the table.” That’s the kind of line that tells you the temperature around the program has turned up fast.
The biggest issue hasn’t changed much during Riley’s run in Los Angeles: USC can score, recruit and flash real talent, but the defense keeps dragging everything down. Riley is already on his third defensive coordinator in five years, and Gary Patterson was brought in to clean up the mess.
So far, that fix hasn’t taken hold. USC is giving up 26.4 points per game and 354.8 total yards per game, and the latest public-relations hit around the Desman Stephens situation has only made the whole thing look worse.
There is still plenty to like on offense, starting with Jaiden Maiava. In his third year quarterbacking the Trojans, he has thrown for 1,499 yards, 14 touchdowns and just 2 interceptions while completing 70.1% of his passes.
Kartje pointed to the obvious tools: “You can see the arm talent with Maiava as soon as he throws the ball. He has a prototype size and a cannon for a right arm, and when he’s got it under control, he’s capable of making impossibly hard throws.”
Maiava also has more than enough help around him, even after USC lost its top two receivers from last season to the NFL. Freshman outside receiver Kayden Dixon-Wyatt and tight end Mark Bowman have emerged as rising stars, though Bowman is questionable for Saturday.
Sophomore Tanook Hines has been slow to get going, but Kartje thinks he could be due for a breakout, and transfer Terrell Anderson has been quiet enough that a big game would not surprise. The Trojans’ offense is at its best when the run game is rolling, and USC finally has an offensive line that can move people.
Still, the ground game has not matched last season’s explosiveness. Waymond Jordan has not looked like the same back since returning from an ankle injury, while King Miller, the former walk-on, has grown into a bigger and better runner.
On the other side of the ball, the frustration is easy to see. USC’s defensive line has shown more talent this year thanks to freshman Luke Wafle and senior tackle Jide Abasiri, but the pass rush has barely shown up outside of a shutout of Fresno State in Week 1.
Across the other four games, the Trojans have only three sacks. The secondary has been the bigger problem.
Kartje said that group has been “totally out of sorts” since the start of the season and that players are often out of position at the snap. It’s a weakness Washington quarterback Demond Williams will presumably try to attack.
One name Washington fans may want to learn is Dixon-Wyatt, who Kartje called USC’s best receiver - and maybe its best offensive player - this season. With Trent Mosley drawing attention early before getting hurt, Dixon-Wyatt has stepped into a much bigger role. On defense, Jahkeem Stewart is another player to file away; Kartje described him as a stud defensive tackle who just returned last week.
As for the bigger picture, Kartje doesn’t see much room for error. USC has made it clear that the expectation is a College Football Playoff berth, with billboards around town reading “The Time Is Now.”
But the Trojans still have Ohio State, Indiana, Penn State and UCLA left on the schedule, and Kartje thinks it’s more likely the season unravels than climbs into the Playoff picture. His forecast: 7-5.
For this one, he expects USC to move the ball. The concern is whether the Trojans can keep Demond Williams from breaking the game open with his legs and his ability to extend plays. And with Penn State waiting next week on the road in a White Out, USC’s margin for disappointment is already thin.
In Other News...
Washington Heads To USC With One Big Break On Defense
Washingtons trip to USC picked up a little more defensive intrigue this week, and not because of anything the Huskies did on the field. The Trojans will be without linebacker Desman Stephens after he was suspended for one game following the illegal late hit that got him ejected against Oregon, a play that drew plenty of attention and forced USC to address both discipline and player safety.
For Washington, the timing matters because the Huskies are also expecting key defenders back from injury as they head into a tricky road matchup. USC coach Lincoln Riley said the suspension was necessary and stressed the programs support for Oregon quarterback Dante Moore as he recovers, but the bigger ripple for Saturday is that Washington will not have to prepare for Stephens on the other side of the ball. [Read more 🡒]
Washingtons Run Game Has Turned Into A Real Early Problem
Washingtons rushing game has been one of the early trouble spots of the season, and it has shown up in a hurry. Through four weeks, the Huskies sit near the bottom of the Big Ten in rushing yards per game, a sign that the ground attack has not yet found any rhythm as the league schedule starts to tighten.
The issues have been compounded by a thin backfield, with injuries slicing into the group Washington expected to lean on. Jordan Washington, Quaid Carr, Jayden Limar and Julian McMahan have all been part of the setback, leaving Brian Bonner and Trey Cooley to handle most of the load while Ansu Sanoe and Ryken Moon fill in around them. The result is a rotation still trying to settle, and the bigger concern is whether the Huskies can stabilize it before the absence list gets any longer. [Read more 🡒]
USC Suddenly Has A Linebacker Problem Heading Into Washington
USCs defense will look different when Washington comes to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, and not just because of the usual late-season turnover. The Trojans are already managing a linebacker shuffle after Desman Stephens II was sidelined, leaving a vacancy in the middle of a defense that has to deal with a Huskies offense built around quarterback Demon Williams Jr. and his ability to threaten teams as a runner and a passer.
TaMere Robinson is the veteran now asked to step into the spot and steady things for USC, bringing experience from his time at Penn State into a game that figures to test his range and discipline. For Washington, it adds another wrinkle to a matchup that already had enough intrigue, because the Huskies may have found one more area where they can press an opponent that suddenly has to adjust on the fly. [Read more 🡒]