Let’s get this out of the way: The Nevada Wolf Pack are not supposed to be very good this season. Nevada was picked to finish 11th in the Mountain West Conference this season. The team suffered some departures on its coaching staff just before the season began. There has been some internal conflict within the Nevada football program. This was never going to be a particularly close game.
That having been said, USC could either have improved or regressed in this game. The Trojans could have failed to make adjustments, or they could have performed their jobs better than they did against San Jose State. Which path would they take? Which kind of performance would they deliver? It wasn’t a season-defining game or a make-or-break situation, but every week is a chance to either grow or stumble.
The USC defense grew.
How much? That’s the real question we can’t really answer until bigger games arrive against tougher teams. It is only Nevada. Yes. We get that.
As far as it goes, though, USC did better.
Let’s look at some game highlights and notes while also passing along some reactions from fans and journalists: