The knives were already out. The boos were already ringing.
At the end of an already brutal week at USC, during which the nation was ready to dance on the graves of the Trojans and their coach, it seemed for much of Saturday that any last shreds of faith in coach Lincoln Riley might melt away in the beating Southern California sun. Not only had the aftermath of their Oregon loss gone as poorly as possible, but now the Trojans were tripping over themselves again, trailing Washington, a middling Big Ten team down to its fourth-string running back, and a chant began to rise above the fray, from the USC student section.
“FIRE LINCOLN!” they roared.
That refrain had only been heard in hushed tones until this past week. But Saturday, before the Trojans pulled away with a 25-21 victory, it felt as if their embattled coach stood at the edge of a certain rubicon, one he may not return from with one wrong step.
That tension still hung thick over the Coliseum until late in the third quarter, when linebacker Elijah Newby came roaring around the edge toward Washington quarterback Demond Williams Jr. He swatted the ball out of his right hand, and defensive tackle Jahkeem Stewart scooped it up. He sprinted 48 yards on a sore foot for a go-ahead score.
Just two minutes earlier, the Trojans had been down 21-10, and it wasn’t hard to envision how their season could continue spiraling from there. One mistake, one missed opportunity, one penalty after another brought them to this point, despite the fact that the Huskies actually struggled to move the ball on USC’s defense throughout.
It looked, for most of Saturday, like that unit took a step forward after the last two weeks, when both Rutgers and Oregon marched on them. Through one half, USC held Washington to just 44 passing yards. Through three quarters, Washington was averaging fewer than six yards per play.
USC’s defense nearly came apart in the fourth quarter, though, at the worst possible time. Washington hadn’t converted a single third down until its final drive, when Williams converted a third-and-11 pass, then hit a fourth-and-two bomb for 43 yards. The Huskies got as close as the USC 12-yard line, before the Trojans finally shut the door.
USC (5-1, 2-1) did try something a little different on that side of the ball, with defensive coordinator Gary Patterson calling the game from the press box instead of the sideline.
But the real concerns Saturday actually came on offense, where the Trojans uncharacteristically sputtered. Jayden Maiava was 21 of 34 for 245 yards, with a touchdown and an interception.
Still, judging by the box score alone, you’d be hard-pressed to understand how USC could have nearly squandered a game in which they piled up far more yards (360 to 319) and had the ball for far longer (34:58 to 25:02).
After a disappointing few weeks on the defensive end, USC actually opened the game by forcing Washington (3-2, 0-2) into back-to-back three-and-outs.
But the Trojans managed a measly three points from those stops. Their first drive, sparked by a 35-yard King Miller rush, stalled in the red zone. The next one backed up USC to its own one-yard line, after wideout Terrell Anderson muffed a punt. The Trojans barely moved a few feet.
Washington took advantage of the field position on its next drive. Faced with a fourth-and-seven in USC territory, Williams slipped past pressure and scampered to a first down. It was the first sign of life from the Huskies’ offense, which found its way into the end zone four plays later.
Then, USC gave the ball right back. On the run, Maiava launched a pass off his back foot in the face of heavy pressure. It fell well short of its target and was picked off.
USC’s defense held strong, forcing a third three-and-out in the Huskies’ first four drives. And its offense finally held up its end of the bargain, with Waymond Jordan punching in an eight-yard touchdown.
Washington continued to struggle moving the ball, but mistakes from USC helped its cause. An illegal formation penalty wiped away a deep Trojan touchdown pass to Kayden Dixon-Wyatt. Then on the ensuing possession, freshman defensive end Luke Wafle grabbed Williams’ face mask as he pulled him down for a sack.
USC had more penalty yards (50) than Washington had passing yards (44) in the first half. And those penalties gave the Huskies life at the end of the half, as they drove the length of the field and scored again.
With a chance to regroup, the Trojans tripped over themselves out of the half, too. An unsportsmanlike penalty killed their opening drive. Then, Washington tight end Decker Degraaf caught a pass and took off down the sideline, running through two feeble-arm tackles on the way to an inexplicable 42-yard touchdown.
Soon after that, a chant rang out from the USC student section: “Fire Lincoln!” they yelled.
But the Trojans’ offense mounted a 13-play scoring drive in response. Tanook Hines tore the ball away from a Washington defender in the end zone.
Less than two minutes later, Stewart scooped up the fumble and took off. His 48-yard return completed a 12-point swing for the Trojans.
Still, USC couldn’t put Washington away. Down to their last drive, the Huskies converted a third-and-11 and two fourth downs to drive deep into Trojan territory late.
But the Trojans’ defense held. And USC, at the end of a long, brutal week, breathed a sigh of relief.
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