Lincoln Riley and the USC football team are now 4-5 after last night's loss to Washington, yet another one-score-or-less defeat in a season filled with them.
After getting back into the win column and snapping a three-game losing streak last week vs. Rutgers, the Trojans fell back into a nasty habit of losing close games. On the road, USC fell behind early but battled back and, thanks to a 14-0 third quarter, took the lead against the Huskies last night.
However, just as has been the case all season, USC could not finish the job. Washington scored a touchdown to reclaim the lead early in the fourth quarter, and the Trojans, despite having several chances, could not score again. Facing fourth-and-4 from the Huskies' 14-yard line, USC quarterback Miller Moss, as he was being dragged to the ground, threw an incompletion, ending the Trojans' drive and hopes of earning two wins in a row.
After the game, Riley, who has been roundly criticized the last few seasons for USC's shortcomings on the field, tried to present an optimistic view of the team's 4-5 record.
“It's not like we're getting our a– kicked,” Riley said [h/t Shotgun Spratling]. “It's not like I go back to the drawing board like, ‘Gah, we're doing this terrible and people are wearing us out on this or that.' It's not that.”
Lincoln Riley, USC football team lose another close game
Riley left Oklahoma after the 2021 season for USC, which had recently fired Clay Helton, who had gone 46-24 as the Trojans' head coach. In his three seasons leading the USC football program, Riley is now 23-13 and appears to be heading toward his worst record as a head coach for a second consecutive year.
In the team's first season in the Big Ten, USC has slipped to 4-5 overall and 2-5 in the conference. Although, like Riley indicated, each of the five losses has been close — even if that is not very comforting to many of the Trojans' fans or former players.
After opening the season with wins over LSU and Utah State, USC fell in its inaugural Big Ten game, losing 27-24 to then-No. 18 Michigan on the road. After overcoming a halftime deficit to get their first Big Ten win against Wisconsin, the Trojans lost to Minnesota. Narrow defeats to Penn State and Maryland followed before they finally managed to win again by thumping Rutgers behind a strong second half.
However, Saturday's loss to Washington continues USC's trend of losing games by one score or less. Although the Trojans did not lead at some point in the final minute of regulation like their first four losses, each of the five defeats this season has been by 7 points or fewer. The average margin of defeat for USC in 2024 is 3.8 points.
USC now enters a much-needed bye week before finishing up the regular season with three seemingly critical games. The first will be against Nebraska, a team that has also developed a penchant for losing close games, and then the Trojans will have back-to-back rivalry games at UCLA and vs. Notre Dame.
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