Tag: Miller Moss

2024 will be different for USC’s offense beyond Milller Moss

Quinten Joyner’s role in the USC offense shows why this offense will change beyond Miller Moss.

The biggest and most obvious change in the USC football offense in 2024 is Miller Moss replacing Caleb Williams at quarterback. USC goes from a Heisman Trophy winner and likely No. 1 NFL draft pick to a guy who, though a beloved Trojan, has a lot to prove. Moss has to show he can carry one game and one performance at the Holiday Bowl into — and through — a full 2024 season. There’s no doubt that is the central storyline for the USC offense. However, it won’t be the only huge change. Quinten Joyner — according to Lincoln Riley — will likely be a big part of the 2024 Trojan offense.

Why does this represent a change? It’s because Woody Marks — a transfer from Mississippi State — is already certain to be a primary running back. USC went to the portal last year for another SEC running back, MarShawn Lloyd from South Carolina. Marks is that guy this year. Yet, if Riley is saying Quinten Joyner will be a core part of the offense, that shifts the paradigm for the Trojans.

In 2023, Lloyd was the primary running back for USC, and the other guys in the running back room did not get large amounts of touchdes. In 2022, Travis Dye got the vast majority of touches until he got hurt. Only when he went down with an injury did Austin Jones, Darwin Barlow, and others in the room get more carries. USC has had one primary (dominant) running back the past two seasons. This year, it’s going to be more of a balanced room with multiple guys getting more opportunities in a context of distributed wealth, keeping guys fresh and throwing different looks at opposing defenses. This is necessary in the rugged Big Ten. USC can’t exhaust one running back. The Trojans need multiple players who are fresh in the third and fourth quarters and can wear down opposing defenses.

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Lincoln Riley is playing chess with Miller Moss and Jayden Maiava at USC

Lincoln Riley has a quarterback competition at USC, but he structured it very intentionally and carefully.

The USC Trojans have a quarterback comepetition in the spring between Miller Moss and Jayden Maiava. That’s not our opinion. That’s not any commentator’s attempt to create controversy or manufacture drama That’s Lincoln Riley’s stated plan. However, while Riley has been up front in saying this is a genuine competition, we can look beneath the surface and identify a few layers to what Riley is thinking and doing.

We noted this point:

“Lincoln Riley said last week that he did not want a portal quarterback who was older. That quarterback obviously would have come to USC expecting to start. Otherwise, such a quarterback would not have transferred to the program. This is why Will Howard never did transfer to USC. An upperclassman would have reasonably expected to start for the Trojans. Riley didn’t want that because he wanted Miller Moss to have a chance to be the guy, but Riley did want a quarterback competition. He wanted Moss to have reasonable odds of becoming the starter instead of putting an established veteran above him.”

This is such an important point in the context of this “competition.” It is a competition, but Riley wanted the competition to be something Moss could reasonably handle. If Will Howard or another older quarterback came to USC, that quarterback would expect to start, period. Bringing in Maiava as a younger quarterback makes Moss the preferred candidate for the Week 1 start against LSU.

Put it this way: It’s still a real competition, but Maiava would have to absolutely blow out Moss — greatly exceeding him — in order to take the QB1 spot. If it’s remotely close or there’s any uncertainty at all, Moss gets the nod. Riley wanted it this way. Moss is still extremely likely to be the guy, even though it’s a legitimate competition. The contours of the competition are what you need to pay attention to.

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No USC fans should be worried about Miller Moss-Jayden Maiava spring QB battle

USC fans, you don’t have to be concerned about this QB competition in the spring. Truly.

The spring football portion of the USC offseason contains many storylines. One of the bigger ones is the competition at the quarterback spot between Miller Moss and Jayden Maiava.

We wrote about this earlier:

“Most USC fans, if you ask them, would say that Miller Moss has already earned the starting job for the 2024 season and that crucial season-opening game against LSU in Las Vegas on Labor Day weekend. What will be interesting to see is if Riley will be willing to elevate Maiava to the starting job or if this “competition” is really just a way of making sure Miller Moss earns QB1 status without having it given to him before spring ball even begins.”

No one at USC should be worried about this battle. Why? Miller Moss getting competition is a way of keeping him sharp and hungry. Giving him the job right now might create a sense of entitlement. Lincoln Riley wants to make sure Moss remains on his game. It’s a good way to motivate a player and improve the odds of accountability and responsibility existing at the quarterback position. There’s really no harm in having Miller Moss work a little more to earn this job. Pete Carroll famously said, “Always compete!” This is a Carroll-like move by Riley to have a real quarterback competition.

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Miller Moss will run this USC football offense differently in 2024

Miller Moss not being Caleb Williams can actually become a positive thing for the USC offense in 2024.

Miller Moss is not Caleb Williams. USC football will be different in 2024. Seeing that sentence — “Miller Moss is not Caleb Williams” — could be viewed as a negative, but that’s not necessarily true. Caleb Williams is a dazzling talent, a Heisman Trophy winner, and a soon-to-be No. 1 NFL draft pick. He is fantastic. Yet, Miller Moss being different from Caleb can play into certain strengths and make the USC offense quite productive and efficient.

One thing Miller Moss very clearly showed in the Holiday Bowl was an ability — and more than that, a willingness — to throw checkdowns, to get rid of the ball quickly, to not hang onto the ball too long and put his offensive linemen in a compromised position. Caleb Williams did a ton of great things for USC in 2023, but if there was one central knock on him, it was that he held the ball too long. Offensive linemen couldn’t sustain their blocks in certain situations, and plays devolved into chaos.

Miller Moss, when throwing the ball quickly and on time in Lincoln Riley’s scheme, made stacks of big plays in the Holiday Bowl, and his offensive linemen were not overburdened against a legitimately good Louisville front line. That is the blueprint and vision for how USC’s offense can thrive and function in 2024, with Moss making accurate reads before the snap and then equally accurate throws to open receivers. We discussed this and much more with Mark Rogers at The Voice of College Football:

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Miller Moss is good at throwing checkdowns, but he will need to do more than that at USC

Miller Moss was great at getting the ball out quickly in the Holiday Bowl, but he has room for more evolution.

One of the obvious reasons the Holiday Bowl went so well for USC, particularly the Trojans’ offense, is that Miller Moss was disciplined and prepared. Specifically, Moss threw the checkdown pass and got the ball out quickly. He didn’t hold onto the ball too long, something Caleb Williams struggled with in the 2023 season. Caleb wanted to make the splash play on a consistent basis. He didn’t take the five-yard dump-off nearly as much as he could or should have. It was a flaw in the USC offense, and it did hurt the Trojans at times. Moss’s willingness to take the five-yard dump-off against Louisville helped USC’s offense flow and stay on schedule in the Holiday Bowl.

This leads to an important conversation about Moss and the USC offensive line:

Miller Moss-Jayden Maiava spring ball QB battle contains layers at USC

This is a point of obvious interest to every USC football fan:

There will be a quarterback battle at USC football this spring. Lincoln Riley isn’t automatically or immediately giving Miller Moss the starting job. Moss will have to earn the job in a competition with Jayden Maiava, the underclassman from UNLV who transferred to the Trojans this offseason.

Most USC fans, if you ask them, would say that Miller Moss has already earned the starting job for the 2024 season and that crucial season-opening game against LSU in Las Vegas on Labor Day weekend. What will be interesting to see is if Riley will be willing to elevate Maiava to the starting job or if this “competition” is really just a way of making sure Miller Moss earns QB1 status without having it given to him before spring ball even begins.

Let’s discuss the elements of this situation in depth:

USC’s Lincoln Riley offense will face Alex Grinch and the Wisconsin defense on September 28, 2024

USC will get to play against Wisconsin and Alex Grinch this September in the Coliseum. Advantage, Miller Moss.

Alex Grinch has been hired by Wisconsin football head coach Luke Fickell. Badgers Wire has more on the story. Grinch will be the safeties coach for the Badgers this season. This means a lot of things. One is that Grinch will actually return to the Los Angeles Coliseum to coach a game. Wisconsin visits USC on September 28, 2024. It is a wild and improbable turn of events, one that Trojan fans will welcome. Lincoln Riley and Miller Moss will expect to feast on a secondary coached by Grinch. Trojan fans will hope to capitalize on this unique opportunity.

When the news hit that Alex Grinch would coach against USC in 2024, social media popped and lit up like a Christmas tree. Here’s a sampling:

USC commit Julian Lewis announces he will be a spring enrollee in 2025

USC could have a spring QB battle in 2024. It will have one in 2025.

Julian Lewis, previously the top-ranked quarterback prospect in the 2026 class, made a significant announcement earlier this week. He revealed that he would reclassify to the 2025 class. Lewis confirmed speculation when he more recently announced that he would not only sign a year earlier but also become an early enrollee. This move has set the stage for a captivating quarterback battle at USC.

Entering the 2024 spring season, USC is placing its bets on redshirt junior Miller Moss as the presumed frontrunner to lead the Trojans as the starting quarterback in 2024. The general consensus is that Moss solidified his position as QB1 for the fall after delivering a masterful performance in the Holiday Bowl. He completed 23 out of 33 passes for an impressive 372 yards and six touchdowns against a formidable Louisville defense. Lincoln Riley’s postgame statement further solidified Moss’s standing, hinting that his skills may have dissuaded potential transfers from coming to Los Angeles.

Despite Riley’s assertion, Jayden Maiava, the celebrated Mountain West Freshman of the Year, decided to commit to the Trojans. Maiava’s heroics began when he came off the bench early in the season, leading the UNLV Rebels on a remarkable comeback against the Vanderbilt Commodores, overcoming a 17-point deficit in Week 3. From then on, there was no looking back for Maiava. With him as the starting quarterback, UNLV achieved a 7-2 record, earning him Second Team All-Mountain West honors. At 6-4 and 220 pounds, he stands tall in the pocket with a big arm. He’s also athletic. He shows the ability to keep the ball and run with power and speed.

While Moss is technically eligible in 2025, he will probably move on to the NFL following the 2024 season. This creates an opportunity for a traditional quarterback competition between Maiava and Lewis in the spring of 2025.

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USC line play lags behind Oregon, but its QB situation is in a good place again

In a two-team comparison, USC is still behind Oregon, but at least the QB room has been upgraded.

The USC Trojans are not as good as the Oregon Ducks right now. Let’s be real and honest about that point. Oregon has been significantly better in recruiting and moderately better in the transfer portal. Dillon Gabriel is a better QB1 than Miller Moss, though Moss obviously showed he can be very, very good in the Holiday Bowl.

Oregon is better than USC primarily because it has better line play (Josh Conerly) and more depth. USC has to make up the gap in that regard, which is why the upcoming spring transfer portal window is so important. USC will need a few splashes in the spring to gain ground on the Ducks and shore up the defensive line for 2024 in the Big Ten.

There is one realm in which USC has fundamentally caught up with Oregon, however: the quarterback room. Oregon has Dillon Gabriel for 2024 and Dante Moore (the UCLA transfer) for 2025. USC needed to stack its quarterback room in the same way, establishing both a 2024 and 2025 quarterback. USC has Miller Moss as the 2024 quarterback and Jayden Maiava for 2025.

Notably, Julian Lewis reclassified for 2025 from 2026. If he’s good enough, maybe he can overtake Maiava in 2025, but the bigger point is that USC has that position accounted for in a manner similar to what Oregon has achieved.

We discussed this and a lot more with Mark Rogers at The Voice of College Football:

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Miller Moss makes it a lot easier to put Caleb Williams’ USC career in context

USC failed in 2023 because Caleb Williams’ teammates simply weren’t as good as they were in 2022. Bottom line.

It was noticed by a lot of USC fans that Miller Moss publicly thanked Caleb Williams earlier this week after Caleb declared for the 2024 NFL draft. That was a very open and visible display of respect from Moss, putting to rest the idea that Caleb was somehow a bad teammate who didn’t command admiration or earn trust from his USC teammates.

One of the ugliest whisper campaigns of 2023 from some media personalities and fans was this idea that Caleb Williams was a bad teammate based on a gesture here or a lack of emotion there. Yes, USC had a bad season, and yes, USC didn’t play nearly as well as it should have … but it wasn’t because Caleb Williams was a bad teammate.

We have said this multiple times, and we need to say it again: This was about human nature. When a player such as Caleb Williams takes the field, it is easy for teammates to think he will rescue a broken play or escape pressure and make everything okay in the end. Caleb Williams is so talented that his teammates trusted his talent a little too much, instead of doing their jobs.

Also, USC was simply a soft team in 2023. It missed Andrew Vorhees. It missed Brett Neilon. It missed Bobby Haskins. Those guys played hard for Caleb Williams. It’s not as though Caleb suddenly became a worse teammate in 2023.

What Caleb didn’t do well in 2023 was take the checkdown and the short gain. He was trying to make the perfect play too often, especially with an offensive line which wasn’t as good as 2022 and receivers who didn’t get as open as they did in 2022. It wasn’t a lack of morale in the locker room which doomed USC’s offense (the defense? that’s a separate question). The Trojans simply weren’t as good, and Caleb Williams didn’t adjust to that reality by making the simple play instead of hoping the big downfield splash play would develop.

Miller Moss respects Caleb Williams. USC didn’t play as hard for Caleb as it did for Moss in the Holiday Bowl because the Trojans knew Miller Moss needed help in order to succeed. USC didn’t always think Caleb Williams needed help — not because Caleb was selfish, but because human nature leads us to watch superstars do their thing instead of focusing on the task at hand. That’s a really important point to make as we put Caleb’s USC career into perspective.

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