The USC football program has had a subpar season, at least to their standards and have an uncertain future next year in more ways than one. They came out the gates scoring hot starting the season 6-0 and putting up over 40 points per game which is nothing to sneeze at, although their schedule was extremely soft: San Jose State (56-28), Nevada (66-14), Stanford (56-10), Arizona State (42-28), Colorado (48-41) and their sixth win was against Arizona in three overtimes (43-41).
In all of those wins, quarterback Caleb Williams was sensational throwing a total 22 touchdowns to only one interception. It seemed as if the game came too easy to Williams and the offense. The initial rankings were quite generous as the Trojans was ranked well into the top ten, sixth to be exact. But over the last month, it’s been a shocking nosedive, particularly on defense which has led to one big change for the football team.
Disastrous October Dooms Trojans Playoff Hopes
USC QB Caleb Williams (13)- Michael Reaves/ Getty Images
The last month, everything that can go wrong for the USC Trojans has gone wrong. The most alarming thing with this team has been their lack of defense, struggling specifically with getting stops when they need them on third downs. The downfall started against Notre Dame when they got their doors blown off on national TV, 48-20. The offense lost them that game as Caleb Williams and company turned the ball over FIVE times.
It was certainly a wakeup call to the rankings committee as the Trojans dropped from the top six to outside the top 10, 11 to be exact. Didn’t seem like that big a deal at the time. Even the best teams have one game that gives them a wakeup call. But now it’s become a pattern of inconsistency. Since the Notre Dame debacle, they’ve continued to have horrendous play defensively, none more stunning than against Utah.
USC’s Last Minute Collapse Against Utah
Williams sits on bench in agony after watching Utah celebrate the game winning field goal- Sports Illustrated
The nail in the coffin for USC’s football season was a collapse against fellow Pac-12 rival Utah. It was somewhat of a must win game to keep their hopes alive for the Pac-12 Championship and the college football playoff. Mind you, this was against Utah’s THIRD STRING quarterback, Bryson Barnes. The Trojans trailed for most of the second half but a pick six from linebacker Calen Bullock was the catalyst for them to get back into the game as Utah’s lead was quickly cut from 11 to five, 28-23.
After trading field goals in the fourth, USC had a chance to win with under two minutes left. It took one play to take the lead as Williams did it himself scoring a touchdown putting the Trojans on top, 32-31. The big problem? Defense can’t stop a nosebleed let alone an offense.
Barnes and Utah’s offense put on a clinic the final 1:46 of the game as USC’s defense could not stop them even though they had MULTIPLE chances. The back breaker was a 20-yard run by Bryson Barnes to get inside the five and set up a game winning field goal. The Coliseum was SILENT as Utah celebrated and the Trojans swallowed a second straight loss and kissed their playoff hopes goodbye.
Things Couldn’t Get Worse, Right?
To add insult to injury, USC’s defense has allowed 49 and 52 points over the last two weeks to Cal and Washington respectively. Just this past Monday, head coach Lincoln Riley FINALLY did what needed to be done a long time ago and fired his defensive coordinator, Alex Grinch. USC football’s defensive unit gives up 34 points per game which ranks 124th out of 133 FBS schools. Additionally, the football team ranked
So now, with one regular season game left, what do the Trojans do looking ahead? They are coming off a 36-27 loss to Oregon just last night to drop to 7-4. I believe Williams and several of his other teammates will now shift their focus to the 2024 NFL draft as they are draft eligible .Time for USC’s football program to re-tool and find a new defensive coordinator and quarterback. A lot of uncertainly looms aside from head coach Lincoln Riley.
