What a wild week it’s been for the USC Trojans.
Just last Saturday, it seemed like the Lincoln Riley era in Los Angeles was nearing its end. SC went into Madison as a sizable favorite over the Wisconsin Badgers and laid what can only be described as, charitably, an egg. For the first time in his coaching career, a Lincoln Riley team scored just seven points in a game.
There were head-scratching coaching mistakes, including attempting a 58-yard field goal against the wind. Predictably, it did not work, setting Wisconsin up with outstanding field position and a score. The Trojans looked poorly prepared and poorly coached, with senior quarterback Jayden Maiava taking multiple atrocious intentional grounding penalties and throwing two picks, a muffed catch on a Badgers kickoff leading to a missed opportunity before halftime, not calling timeout when the SC defense was misaligned on a pivotal fourth-and-2, leading to a Wisconsin touchdown, and an incredible -17 net rushing yards.
After the game, the speculation and discussion was immediate. Riley was mentally checked out in LA, was one common sentiment. USC’s athletic department had already started putting together funds to potentially clear Riley’s rumored $70 million buyout. And fans and analysts were putting together wish lists of potential new coaches for 2027 and beyond.
Then, Saturday happened. USC hosted the Ohio State Buckeyes, still heavily favored despite starting backup quarterback Luke Fahey. OSU has a top three defense, arguably the best player in the country in Jeremiah Smith, and a wealth of big game experience under head coach Ryan Day. And sure enough, the Trojans dominated.
Even in a college football season where parity has been more obvious than ever, it was a shocking upset. Ohio State dominated time of possession and racked up yardage thanks to some garbage time drives, but never really looked like they had much of a chance. When set up with a first-and-goal inside the 1-yard-line, the Buckeyes still couldn’t get in the end zone.
USC, which has been unimpressive for most of the season, looked like a totally different team. Star freshman Trent Mosley took a screen pass on the second play of the game for a long touchdown. Mark Bowman provided the highlight of the year from a tight end, hurdling an Ohio State defender and running through tackles on a huge catch and run. And the Trojans much-maligned defense grabbed an opportune turnover, forced a fumble that was inexplicably not reviewed, and got stop after stop when they needed it.
Needless to say, a win over the number two team in the country was a season, and potentially program, altering turn of events. And Riley had a well, interesting, time after the conclusion, including a run-in with the Ohio State athletic director, and an unusual prepared statement that he read during postgame media availability.
