Nearly every sports fan has been in this general situation at some point in life: His or her team is not having a good-enough season. The state of the team is not what it needs to be or should be. Late in the season, the coaches are on the hot seat. Winning games might rescue them and give them one more year, but losing might guarantee they get fired and replaced, ideally with someone much better.
In pro sports, losing games late in a disappointing season often carries the added benefit of getting a higher draft pick. In the case of the NFL, losing games — falling to the bottom of the standings — creates a more favorable schedule for the following season as well. The NFL frequently forces teams to ask themselves if it’s worth it to win two more games late in a season or tank for much better long-term odds and outcomes.
USC is not an NFL team, but we have to ask: Is it better for the Trojans to beat Washington this Saturday, or lose — especially if it’s a blowout — to make sure Alex Grinch and Bennie Wylie get fired?
Let’s go through the different elements of this conversation: