FOOTBALL

USC-Washington Report Card

QUARTERBACK

Jayden Maiava is so spotty some people claim he is hurt. Lincoln Riley said he is fine. Maybe Maiava is just not as good as advertised. He certainly needs to stop throwing off his back foot. And if he is hurt, why does Riley keep having him run the ball.

Grade: D

RUNNING BACK

Did you know USC averaged 3.3 yards per carry? And that was with King Miller’s 35-yard run. The running game is average. Can’t say anything else after six games. That’s a huge disappointment from what was envisioned before the season.

Grade: D+

WIDE RECEIVER

Kayden Dixon-Wyatt was busy with an illegal formation penalty that cost a TD and an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. On the plus side, Tanook Hines caught a TD on a 50-50 ball so maybe he’s going to start showing up like he did last season. He also had a holding penalty.

Grade: C

OFFENSIVE LINE

A couple costly penalties didn’t help but they continue to be extremely average at best. The one thing they should be good at (run blocking) remains a challenge.

Grade: C-

DEFENSIVE LINE

Other than Luke Wafle’s five tackles, this wasn’t one of the better efforts from USC’s strongest defensive unit. Washington came in with huge problems running the ball and freshman Brian Bonner gained 89 yards. They will need to play better at Penn State.

Grade: C

LINEBACKER

There were still some of the usual glaring errors but at least they made a few plays too and yes, they looked sharper without Desman Stephens. Will Stephens slot back into the starting lineup against Penn State? Ta’mere Robinson (six tackles) would probably love to start against his former team (Penn State).

Grade: C+

DEFENSIVE BACKS

Who taught Kennedy Urlacher and Elbert Hill how to tackle on the sideline? It was amazing how many receivers were open but the $4 million Tomato Can (Demond Williams) could not get them the ball. Would RJ Sermons or Marcelles Williams be any worse if they played?

Grade: D-

SPECIAL TEAMS

Can we have a game without a major mistake? A fumbled punt return led directly to a Washington TD. Mike Ekeler is not making much impact yet. At least the punter knows how to place the ball near the goal line.

Grade: C-

COACHING

The offensive genius is ranked No. 98 nationally in red-zone conversion rate. Did he have USC ready to bounce back after the Oregon loss? The Trojans looked sluggish. The discipline is non-existent. Are they getting better on a weekly basis? When does Jen Cohen decide USC’s not getting its money’s worth?

Grade: F

GAME MANAGEMENT

Leave it to USC to fumble the most popular item in years, the beer swords. They sold out by the end of the first quarter. How many did they have for the game, 150? People are going to the game and immediately lining up for the sword and still not getting one. USC has bottled it.

Grade: F

THE FANS

By the ultra-patient, genteel standards of the Coliseum, things got a little surly on Saturday as some of the crowd (especially the students) got their fill and started chanting “Fire Lincoln!”

Grade: C+

21 thoughts on “USC-Washington Report Card”

  1. Scooter,

    I have not seen the game yet. However, I will concur on the coaching grade. As far as the Fan grade, I disagree. It should be a B-. When students start chanting Fire Riley, that is a good and positive upswing. If SC loses to Penn St., you know there will be more chanting.

    Also, you need a grade for the Athletic Depart. I will start. I will give Jen Taco Lita Cohen an F. She is obviously lost in what she is supposed to do. Instead of being a soroity girl, she should be crtiquing Riley, his product, SC football, and where it is going. She treats it like everything is fine. Fire her as well.

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      1. So Cal,

        I love El Tepyeac’s. I ate the Mauel Special by myself one time. It took me 2 and 1/2 hours. I had a bet which I had to win else I would have been called a derogtory remark for the rest of my life. I would not let my friend have that over me.

        Liked by 7 people

      2. I don’t think I could even finish a Hollenbeck on my own these days. Well, maybe over a couple of hours.

        Damn! This talk of good food now has me craving Versailles for some garlic chicken! That and a glass of sangria!! Mmmmm.

        Liked by 5 people

    2. I’m no fan of Cohen but WTF is she supposed to do ? She was handed the worst contract in college football. There are few deep pocket donors left, where is the money going to come from? Musselman is on her, a small amount of NIL for baseball is on her, Riley is all Bohn’s and he’s on a beach somewhere laughing.

      I want Riley gone now, it isn’t happening and I think it’s 50/50 he’s back next year.

      Liked by 3 people

      Reply

      1. Budda,

        She can make it tough for him. For starrters, she can get the nd series back sooner than 2030. He can put heat on him by asking why the team is bad and how he plans to fix it. She needs to knwo how and not just hear his words. She has to see the improvement. Make it tough on him so that he either improves or he will want to leave.

        Liked by 2 people

      2. She’s tried to help him, you think Boden was Riley’s hire ? You don’t think she was behind him canning Grinch ? She can’t coach for the dunce.

        If SC loses 4 to 5 games it’s not going to matter, Riley has SC by the shorthairs. He’s not going to negotiate a buyout, he’ll want to be paid in full, he knows the school is having financial issues.

        The only way SC gets let off the hook is for some other school to hire him, and SC will still be on the hook for some of his contract because no other school is going to pay that dunce 10 million a year.

        Liked by 2 people

      3. KAM: “First do no harm”

        DON Jen “Taco Lita” Cohen ended the Notrte Dame rivalry at least until 2030. She will always be known for harming USC football.

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  3. KAM: I am sure a crowd like at Penn St energizes its own team

    DON: And gets the visiting team going too

    KAM: Surely the Nittany Lions’ fans are down having lost 2 in a row but now the SC game is all that matters

    DON: During the Rose Bowl Game days SC would only see a Ohio St, Michigan or Penn St every decade or so. Now the Trojans get them at least every 3rd year

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  4. Beware- Trojans for an ambush on Saturday in Happy Valley, PA.

    Just like Gen. George Armstrong Custard who was attacked all at one time from the front, rear, and both sides at Big Horn. All the soldiers were scalped except for Custard who Chief Sitting Bowl had respect for as a solider, and for his bravery.

    Penn State will be have a “white” out Saturday night. For the Trojans it will be a “wipe” out.

    Don’t be fooled by the recent Penn State loses with Wisconsin and Northwestern. This is a must win for Penn State who is just in a transition year under a new head coach .but still a good team that will click soon.

    Penn State – 42

    USC 21

    USC will have 3 losses going into the Ohio State game as the results will be sadly the same in Madison, WI which is another tough place to place to play, and this is a good team finally under Luke Fickell.

    Let’s face it folks the USC brand, and mystic were destroyed in the Clay Helton area. USC is a good football program probably not a top tier A program, any longer realistically a B level which puts them in probably the next 20 programs nationally .Definitely not A TOP 20 program any longer which means alot of 7-5 seasons. Great college football coaches, and athletic dept. leaders are hard to find today, and it all starts with the search process not just overpaying for a name who had a few good seasons in the past. If you take a look Lincoln Riley, and AD Jen Cohen the leadership is totally lacking within the country club atmosphere they have created. at USC.

    Can USC return to a Top Tier national championship type again.?? Hard to say never, but it will take some new boosters, a new athletic director, a new football coach, and a fully committed school president like it was in day with John Mckay, Athletic Director Jess Hill, and USC President Dr. Norman Topping.

    Keep Fighting On!

    Liked by 4 people

    Reply

    1. 1) Folt shouldn’t have been in such a hurry to flee the Pac 12. The Big Ten is a bad landing place for USC….

      2) Yes, it would be nice for the football program if we had a USC president who wasn’t a complete dweeb or a leftist stooge….

      3) Things still aren’t THAT bad….there is no way I’m taking your predicted spread over the one coming outta Las Vegas……

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  5. There will never be another run by a college as was seen by Carrot and Alabama’s Saban. Even the top college football programs will have to be content with a championship every decade or so

    Liked by 2 people

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    1. There may be the occasional mini-run, but agreed, the process that has been ongoing for decades and the ability to openly pay players means that the age of dynasties – whatever that may or may not have meant – is over (at least for now, pending more upheaval and attempts to manipulate the landscape – the urge to do so in Dixie can never be underestimated (as it is the modern face of the centuries old mud sill/plantation belief system).

      Liked by 1 person

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    2. KAM: Since winning the 2021 and 2022 national championships, Georgia has stayed among college football’s best, though it hasn’t won another title. It went 65–7 from 2021 through 2025, with at least 11 wins each season.

      1SeasonRecordHighlights

      2021

      14–1

      Won the national championship

      2022

      15–0

      Won the national championship

      2023

      13–1

      Won the Orange Bowl; its only loss was to Alabama in the SEC Championship

      2024

      11–3

      Won the SEC; lost to Notre Dame in the CFP quarterfinal

      2025

      12–2

      Won the SEC; lost to Ole Miss in the CFP quarterfinal

      DON: The “dynasty” label has a strong case: two straight national titles, five excellent seasons, and two more SEC championships—but they’ve fallen short in the playoff the past two years. They are currently 5-0 and ranked #2. Meanwhile USC hasn’t made the playoff once since the days of Pete Carrot.

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