FOOTBALL

USC-Illinois Live Blog

Lincoln “Clock Management” Riley.

USC grabs a TD back but then lets Illinois go right back down the field for a TD.

The defense. Is. Horrible.

And there is the first interception of the season for Jayden Maiava.

What’s worse? USC’s defense or the Fox announcers? Hard to tell what happened at times in first half when announcers didn’t know or were too busy talking about something else.

The USC defensive line was supposed to be much better but it got pushed around in the first half. USC did not have a tackle for loss.

USC dodges a bullet with the goal-line fumble.

USC turns ball over on downs.

USC with its own its trick-play TD but . . . it’s coming back for a penalty.

The USC defense is just awful. And it’s committed four penalties already today!

USC answers back with a 75-yard TD drive, which means the ordinary defense will be back on the field.

And USC’s defense gets pushed right down the field and gives up a TD.

Kamari Ramsey is apparently sick and not playing.

Fumble!

REO Speedwagon performing with Illinois band at halftime.

USC offensive today:

LT Justin Tauanuu

LG Micah Banuelos

C Kilian O’Connor

RG Alani Noa

RT Tobias Raymond

Elijah Paige is out today.

69 thoughts on “USC-Illinois Live Blog”

    1. Speaking of great bands from the past, you catch Earth, Wind and Fire on CBS last Sunday, “the 21st night of September”! 🙂

      Taped at the Hollywood Bowl. It was a really good show!!

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  7. Woke USC highlighting the one female drum major we’ve ever had in the USC promotional commercial video, even though it was SIX YEARS ago and she quit after one year. Most drum majors serve at least two years, but she couldn’t handle the pressure.

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      1. I used to think Helton was snake bit….

        #[ThereIsTimeIfWeCanGetStopOnTheirFirstDrive]….

        #[Big”IF”WithNoseTackleOut&NoProphetBrown]

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    1. my underground sources inform me one of our cheerleaders fed him a “loaded” canape’ like Memo fed to Roy Hobbs in the Natural.

      #ThatsHowTheyGotThaiMex

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  12. Scott is 100% right –Lynn is being exposed. There is no defense w/o his star Ramsey. Lynn has no Plan B.

    #OfCourse,RileyIsBeingExposedTooAtThisPoint

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      1. No…I’m not sure about Plan A either…

        [It’s the commercial break between 3rd and 4th quarter and Illinois was tugging at shirt of our defensive end —for the umpteenth time —without a holding call — so Joel sez “the o-line is doing a great job!”]…

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  14. Okay —obviously were not gonna win –but we’re showing our largest television audience what we’re made of [which isn’t good]…. hope none of the 2026 recruits are watching…….

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  17. Can’t wait for another Lincoln presser telling us how close we are to turning the corner.

    ‘We were in it until the end. We showed good fight coming back.’

    Have we become the gutty little trojans?

    Or the gutty little Lincolns?

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  20. Against real opponents there is absolutely no difference between Grinch and Lynn….. they both sabotage the offense’s last minute heroics…..

    #….Consistently

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  21. Well, not surprised. The defense needed some seniors to step up and only Eric Gentry answered the call. Still have plenty to play for but man, oh man! I get why Reed got beaten out by a walk-on and why Silver is on 2nd string. The secondary is not good enough but overall, the immaturity of this team is unfortunate.

    Glad I get to have my Saturdays back now!!!

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  22. wolfman, two words: clock management. you gueys are paying Saban money for Sir Lincoln Riley….shouldn’t you get minimal game generalship?? going for the winner with two minutes left?? putting you up by one pt?? Conversely, the Illi coach puts on a master class of clock management by kicking FG w/ zero secs left!!

    your words proved to be prophetic: SC would lose to first good team they played!

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  23. Top 5 offense

    Bottom 25 defense

    Will beat Michigan, lose to ND, NE and OR on the road

    NW, IA, UCLA are wins

    8 and 4

    Juat need recruits to honor commitment, lol

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      1. when are you doing start complaining that the officiating cost USC the game.

        there isn’t a game that goes by were you don’t look like an idiot pointing a finger at the zebras

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    1. Lincoln reply: We lost our center to knee injury, our nose tackle to Antifa food poisoning, and our left tackle runs around before the game but can’t play….. also I don’t believe in coaching the second team up [& I’ve passed this approach on to Coach Lynn]….

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  25. As a certified (term used loosely) armchair USC head coach, I would have eaten clock on that last USC drive rather than scoring too soon and leaving Illinois time to run the ball down the hapless defense’s throat for a last second field goal. What the hell was Riley thinking?

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  26. DeAnthony Lynn- is the most overrated coach ever… Overpaid, and so are the players he recruited. UCLA please hire him as your next head coach, and take the hippie Rob Ryan with you. Defense wins games on the road with this secondary and defensive line USC will win very few road games. Sure we had players hurt, but the entire defense look disorganized the entire game especially the defensive backs.
    USC has far superior talent to this Illinois team and USC deserved to lose. Illinois played hard to save their season USC did not especially on defense. USC will lose the Michigan game in the trenches also, and Notre Dame, and Nebraska, and Oregon. 7-5 at best this year. Illinois will have an even worse Big 10 record at the conclusion of the season just an average team.
    Did you all notice in closing seconds of the game our QB Maiva, and WR Lemon were looking at each other as Illinois easy drove the ball down the field to win the game, and it appeared they were shaking their heads about the defense after doing their jobs well in the 4th qtr.
    Wait till next year—– very doubtful!

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    1. Jayden is getting to experience what Caleb experienced before him: a misbegotten defense led by a confused D-Coordinator giving leads away in the final minute. It’s not good when the offense learns to detest the defense.

      btw, Usually teams that give up OVER FIVE HUNDRED YARDS lose games.

      #And…

      #Unfortunately….

      #It’sOurSpecialty

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  27. Clock Management– by USC. Not the reason they lost. DEFENSE- THIS IS ALL ON DeAnthony Lynn…….and the defensive coaches who could not stop an average offense at best. USC needed to score they did that………The USC defense sucked big time……..the entire game.

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    1. ….kinda agree….but it’s up to Riley to think about what you just said…and bleed the clock with one or two running plays to get it down to one minute for Illinois [I realize you have to score to win….but you also have to keep your defense off the field….cuz… it sucks]….

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  28. Now, that we’ve gotten the poison outta our system —I still think a healthy USC can beat Michigan and Notre Dame [cuz our stars don’t need coaching]….. but, even after the bye, we might not be healthy…so we’re probably phucked….

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  32. NAH— You score when the opportunity presents itself who knows penalties could have killed the USC drive. Illinois moved the ball very quickly downfield against a very weak defense. Your paying over a million dollars for a so called defensive genius. USC would have scored over 50 points today if the defense did their job today. Lemon, Maiva, the Tight Ends, and the banged up offensive line did their jobs for the most part when they had the ball. Notre Dame, Michigan, Nebraska, and Oregon will control the time of possession just like Illinois did today keeping our offense off the field. Time of possession still means alot in football, and that’s what Illinois offense did today to keep the ball away from our offense which the Illini knew was the only way to win grind it out with long drives against a weak defense.

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    1. General Proposition: Score as soon as you get the chance. That’s an easy one for most teams. But…. we aren’t most teams. Lincoln’s job is twofold —(1) Score. (2) Score with as little time left as possible ….

      I wouldn’t say this…except for the fact we’ve been beaten so many times just because we left the other team with more than a minute on the clock. Almost any O-Coordinator in the Big Ten can tear us apart in 90 seconds. Our secondary is lost.

      So… yeah…it DOES get risky when you’re behind, have to score AND have to worry about leaving time on the clock —but that’s where we’ve been with Riley since the Utah games…. and that’s where we are now….

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      1. S T F U !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

        MOVE ON…….ARE YOU GOING TO BEAT A DEAD HORSE ALL DAY

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  33. USC might win a big game at home, but not on the road. Defense wins championships…..7-5 this year maybe 8-4 at best..

    Makai Lemon, is a tremendous player……maybe the best WR ever , and that’s saying something. He plays hard every play……….a pleasure to watch.

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