The USC Trojans suffered their first loss of the season against Oregon, but head coach Lincoln Riley is not ready to treat the result as evidence that his team is heading in the wrong direction. Even if Josh Pate swears he is done for.
USC fell 41-27 at the Coliseum on Sept. 26, a frustrating result considering the Trojans battled back to tie the game in the fourth quarter before Oregon pulled away. Riley believes there was far more encouraging football on the tape than the final score suggests.
USC had opportunities to change the outcome. The Trojans erased a 10-point second-half deficit and tied Oregon at 27 when quarterback Jayden Maiava connected with Tanook Hines for an 11-yard touchdown with 12:41 remaining. Maiava threw for 326 yards, while Hines and Kayden Dixon-Wyatt were among several young USC players who flashed against one of the country’s better teams.
That was part of Riley’s message when discussing how USC moves forward. USA Today Sports college sports reporter Jordan Mendoza asked Riley how the Trojans can prevent the Oregon defeat from becoming a defining moment for their season.
“By winning. Just by winning,” Riley said in response to Mendoza’s question. “Look, we didn’t get run out of the stadium. There’s a lot of good things on that tape. There were a lot of young guys making a lot of plays. There’s a lot good on that tape.”
Lincoln Riley Believes USC Has Plenty to Build On
The “didn’t get run out of the stadium” portion of Riley’s answer will likely stand out, but his larger point was about USC’s ability to compete. The Trojans were within striking distance late against Oregon, and Riley believes that matters as USC prepares for another significant test.
“You don’t have a chance to win a game like that if you don’t do some things pretty well,” Riley said. “We have to capitalize on those. We’ve got to get better. We’ve got another great opportunity to do it here Saturday against Washington. We’re ready for them.”
Riley’s message now comes with a straightforward challenge. Finding positives against Oregon is one thing, but turning them into a victory against Washington would provide considerably stronger evidence that USC is moving forward.
The Trojans don’t have to wait long for that opportunity. Washington visits the Coliseum on Oct. 3, giving USC an immediate chance to respond against another Big Ten opponent.
Riley clearly isn’t interested in allowing one loss to define his team. USC showed enough against Oregon for its head coach to remain confident, but Saturday will reveal whether those positives can translate into the result the Trojans need.
Lincoln Riley Insists USC Showed Plenty of Good Despite 41-27 Oregon Loss