Here we go: We have a coaching decision from Lincoln Riley which we must criticize. It was going to happen at some point, and it arrived in the fourth quarter of Saturday night’s win over Stanford.
Look, we can all acknowledge how good a job Lincoln Riley is doing at USC. The offense looks beautiful. Everyone is getting involved. Teammates are playing for each other because they know that they will be rewarded if they do the no-glory gruntwork. They will get the ball. Tight ends are catching passes. Running backs are providing pass protection. Caleb Williams is spreading the ball around. USC’s offense looks dynamic and potent, and we haven’t seen anything close to a full playbook. The offense basically downshifted in the second half with a huge lead, which meant Oregon State didn’t get to see as much on film as it might have hoped for. So many things are flowing in the right direction for this offense. That’s Lincoln Riley’s work. He is making such a positive difference for this program. We love it.
But: This doesn’t mean Riley gets a free pass. This doesn’t mean he should be exempt from criticism when he messes up … and he messed up very clearly late in Saturday’s game against Stanford.
Trojans Wire appeared on the USC postgame show at The Voice of College Football with Tony Altimore, Tim Prangley, and Rick Anaya, to discuss the Stanford game and a lot more.
At 18:30 in the video below, we discussed Lincoln Riley’s big mistakes: the two deep passes thrown midway through the fourth quarter, which prevented USC from more quickly and effectively chewing up the clock and preventing Stanford from making a comeback. Those plays should have been running plays. The USC defense played more of the fourth quarter than it should have. Riley lost focus, and he knows he has to do better.
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