Tag: Pac-12 championship game

Andrew Vorhees injury comes back to haunt USC against tougher, stronger Utah team

Not having Andrew Vorhees in this game caused a domino effect which crashed down upon #USC. Credit #Utah for feasting on this point of vulnerability.

Andrew Vorhees is and has been USC’s best offensive lineman. He is the best NFL draft prospect on the Trojans’ offensive line, the lineman most likely to be a first-round draft pick. He left the Notre Dame game one week ago in the second half. The discussion surrounding his playing status for Friday’s Pac-12 Championship Game against Utah was very quiet, but it became clear just before kickoff that he would not be able to play.

Safe to say, this mattered quite a lot. Mason Murphy had to be slotted at right tackle. Against Arizona, Cal, and Colorado, USC could get by without Vorhees being fully healthy. Against Utah? Nope. The Utes are too physical, too deep, and simply too good.

Here’s a taste of the in-game reaction to Vorhees’ injury absence, and how much it affected USC against Utah:

Quotes from Lincoln Riley after stinging loss to Utah in Pac-12 Championship Game

Lincoln Riley had to face a lot of inconvenient facts and tough truths. He also had to fight off a ‘sky is falling’ form of fatalism after #USC got drubbed by #Utah.

Lincoln Riley hasn’t had to do this very much in 2022: Talk to the media after a USC loss. In fact, he hasn’t had to do this except after games against Utah. The Utes had the Trojans’ number. They geared up for USC and provided a physical standard the Trojans’ defense could not match. In Game 1 on October 15, the Utes threw the ball all game and were able to keep quarterback Cam Rising clean. In Game 2 on Friday night in Las Vegas, the Utes were able to run the ball and eventually wear down the USC defense with a sledgehammer attack and enough third-down passes to keep the Trojans on the field.

Riley saw up close how much Utah exposed the Trojans at their weakest points. See how he reacted to this loss, which creates a lot of questions heading into the bowl game and, beyond that, the coming offseason:

Caleb Williams plays through pain, inspiring many, but injury limits him and USC vs Utah

We never wanted to see this, but we finally saw it: what happens when Caleb Williams’ mobility is limited, taking away his elusiveness in the pocket. #USC

The USC Trojans headed to Las Vegas to face the Utah Utes in the Pac-12 title game.

Things started off well as Caleb Williams threw a pair of touchdowns in the first quarter. Then, things changed drastically as Williams suffered a leg injury.

He remained in the game, but he was nowhere near his Heisman Trophy self, and the Utes came roaring back to repeat as Pac-12 champion and ruin the Trojans’ hopes of a College Football Playoff spot.

Still, Williams put together a gutsy performance and earned the respect of everybody, regardless of fan affiliation.

Get a taste of the respect which flowed through the Pac-12 and national college football communities during this game, which showed how much heart Caleb Williams truly has:

Lincoln Riley buried by Twitter, rival fans during Pac-12 Championship Game loss to Utah

You knew this was coming. You knew if Lincoln Riley got blown out in a big game, the knives would be out. This shows #USC is now relevant again, Trojan fans.

If something like this happened — and by “this,” we mean Lincoln Riley losing decisively in a big game — you knew the wolves and the vultures would be out in force.

Lincoln Riley got blown up and blown out in College Football Playoff losses at Oklahoma. It happened against Alabama in the 2018 season and the Orange Bowl. It happened against LSU in the 2019 season and that year’s Peach Bowl.

“Chokelahoma” and “Jokelahoma” were familiar jabs lobbed at Riley in the wake of those avalanche-style losses.

Now USC is tasting the Lincoln Riley schadenfreude. Again, you knew it was coming.

Simple point: All the hatred coming from the outside is a reminder that USC is in fact back. USC matters again. USC is nationally relevant. Trojan fans should cherish that and let the hate slide right off their shoulders.

Here’s what the hatred looked like:

USC defense exposed in loss to Utah, extending the Alex Grinch debate into a long 2023 offseason

Is it Alex Grinch’s coaching? Is it the lack of personnel? We’ve dealt with these questions all year, and we’ll (probably) deal with them in 2023. #USC

The USC defense did get one turnover against Utah in the Pac-12 Championship Game, and it did get a stop on the first possession of the second half, but those moments of success were relatively few and far between. Over the course of 60 minutes, this Trojan defense was ultimately exposed.

Utah was tougher. Utah was more physical. Utah was better. We don’t have to pretend otherwise. Sure, USC was crushed by injuries, but we have to remember that Utah didn’t have Brant Kuithe, or Tavion Thomas, or Van Fillinger, or Jonah Elliss. Those are all really important players for the Utes.

Utah, not USC, had the quality depth on the field in Las Vegas.

USC’s defense did not hold up.

Dalton Kincaid got his. The Utah running game overpowered USC up front. Tuli Tuipulotu wasn’t able to make enough of an impact.

Oh, and then there were all the missed tackles.

It’s hard to say Alex Grinch coached well with all of these mistakes, but it’s just as hard if not harder to ignore that USC didn’t have the personnel. The Trojans lacked the dudes needed to win.

We really are going to have the Alex Grinch conversation throughout the next nine months leading up to the start of the 2023 season, right?

(We will, assuming Riley doesn’t move for another defensive coordinator.)

Here’s how the night went for USC’s defense, in live action and live responses:

Caleb Williams delivers electric plays early, blood and guts late, seals Heisman Trophy despite loss

Caleb Williams in the 1st quarter: circus-like plays. Caleb Williams in the 4th quarter: heart of a warrior. His team lost, but he definitely won the #Heisman for 2022. #USC

USC lost to Utah in the Pac-12 Championship Game. It certainly wasn’t Caleb Williams’ fault.

With the Pac-12 getting the stage to itself on Friday night, one day before the SEC, Big Ten, Big 12, and ACC play their conference championship games. all eyes were on Caleb Williams. How would he perform in this huge game, with USC one win away from the College Football Playoff?

Many times, a quarterback will play poorly and drag down his team’s performance. The quarterback is the reason his team lost.

That was not the case in this game. Williams played great in the first quarter. Then he got hurt while his offensive line struggled to protect him. He did not quit. He led a ballsy touchdown drive to keep his team in the game. He kept fighting like a true Trojan. He was fighting uphill at the end, but fight on he did.

No one could possibly watch this game and think Caleb Williams is less of a player, less of a Heisman candidate, and less likely to win this award. He reminded everyone why he will win the award.

Take a look at Caleb Williams’ Heisman moments and special plays, plus his injury and his blood-and-guts fourth quarter below:

Utah wrecks USC’s CFP hopes with Pac-12 Championship victory

Utah wrecked USC in the Pac-12 Championship Game

USC’s 2022 season will be remembered for a four-letter nightmare: Utah.

The Utes fell behind by 14 points in the Pac-12 Championship Game on Friday in Las Vegas and roared back for a 47-24 victory.

The win was Utah’s second over the Trojans this season — the first was 43-42 in the regular season — and destroyed hopes USC had for a CFP spot.

The Trojans came into the game in the No. 4 spot, the final playoff slot.

However, there is joy in Ohio now as the Ohio State Buckeyes sit fifth and will not play in the Big Ten Championship Game after being vanquished by Michigan.

USC’s second loss seems to create a path for Ohio State, which is ranked fifth in the CFP, to slide into the fourth spot.

Alabama is sixth but the Crimson Tide has two losses.

The Nos. 1, 2, and 3 teams, respectively, Georgia, Michigan, and TCU, all play Saturday.

USC came into the Pac-12 title game and looked ready to take the final spot as it rolled to a 17-3 lead. However, Heisman Trophy favorite Caleb Williams suffered a cut pinkie on his throwing hand and appeared to be limping through the second half.

The Trojans went limp as Williams hobbled.

Utah, meanwhile, erupted for 44 points in the final 45 minutes. Utes quarterback Cam Rising threw a trio of touchdown passes and went for more than 300 yards in the air.

Utah won the Pac-12 Championship for the second straight year and now will head to the Rose Bowl.

The Trojans were within 27-24 with 10:52 left but Utah scored three touchdowns over the next 9 minutes turning a tight game into a rout.

Williams still threw for more than 360 yards. However, once his mobility was limited, Utah devoured him and USC.

The final indignity was a sack in the last minute. After that, Williams hobbled off as Head Coach Lincoln Riley mercifully replaced him.

 

Social media reaction: USC’s College Football Playoff dream dies in Pac-12 Championship Game

Caleb Williams did everything he could, but Utah was tougher, better, and — in a surprise plot twist — healthier. O-line depth was exposed with Andrew Vorhees out.

Losing is painful. Losing when the College Football Playoff was one win away is painful. Yet, the most painful part of USC’s loss to Utah in the Pac-12 Championship Game is simply that: the pain of the night.

USC players experienced and absorbed a lot of pain. They dropped like flies with all the injuries that befell them.

Andrew Vorhees didn’t play. That was a massive injury — as it turns out, one USC couldn’t really live with against Utah’s front seven. It created a domino effect in which Mason Murphy had to be thrown into the game at right tackle. Utah was missing Van Fillinger and Jonah Elliss, but USC missing Vorhees mattered even more.

Then came the big one, Caleb Williams being hobbled. Late in the game, Brett Neilon and Austin Jones both went down. It was a rotten night for injuries, which exposed USC’s depth. Utah ran away with the game, but this was a three-point contest with just over 10 minutes left. USC will lament lots of things about this game, but the biggest lamentation is this: We wish we had all our guys healthy.

Credit to Utah, a tough team which was uniquely suited to make the Trojans pay the price.

Reaction to this game, specifically from the vantage point of USC’s offense, unfolds below:

Utah counters USC score with 60-yard touchdown in fourth quarter

Utah answers USC with a touchdown of its own in the fourth quarter

Back and forth they go in Las Vegas on Friday.

USC scored to cut Utah’s lead to three points in the Pac-12 Championship Game.

The Utes got the ball and quickly built the lead to 10 points as Cam Rising found Thomas Yassmin, who did the rest.

Yassmin wasn’t about to be stopped, discarding a USC tackler en route to the TD that had the Utes up 34-24 after the PAT.

Potential Chargers prospects to watch in Pac-12 Championship Game

Looking at a few prospects who could be on the Los Angeles Chargers’ radar.

When the USC Trojans and Utah Utes meet up in Friday night’s Pac-12 Championship Game, several prospects will showcase their talents on a supersized stage, with a handful of NFL evaluators watching closely.

Let’s look at a few who could be on the Chargers’ radar.

TE Dalton Kincaid, Utah

The Chargers could address the tight end position next offseason, given Donald Parham’s lingering injury concerns and Tre’ McKitty hasn’t provided much value. Kincaid is a proven pass-catcher with good route-running skills, can produce after the catch, and has the toughness to win and secure crowded catch points. In addition, he is consistent as a blocker. Kincaid amassed 103 receptions for 1375 yards and 16 touchdowns in 25 career games.

CB Clark Phillips, Utah

Brandon Staley said last offseason that as long as he’s head coach, the Chargers will always be looking to upgrade the cornerback room. Should they look to address the positional room early, Phillips is a fine option. The name of Phillips’ game is instincts, excellent movement skills, physicality, and ball skills. Listed at 5-foot-9, Phillips plays bigger than his size. While he may be relegated to slot duties, he’s showcased the ability to play outside at a high level. In 2022, he only allowed 37 receptions on 64 targets for 430 yards, four touchdowns, and a 65.6 quarterback rating. He also amassed six interceptions, five passes defended, and two touchdowns.

DT Tuli Tuipulotu, USC

The Chargers upgraded the defensive tackle position with Sebastian Joseph-Day, Austin Johnson, and Otito Ogbonnina, all of whom are solid run defenders. But they are lacking interior defenders who can get to the quarterback. Tuipulotu is just that. Tuipulotu generated 49 pressures, 11 QB hits, two forced fumbles, and 13 sacks in 354 pass-rush snaps. The 6-foot-5 and 290-pounder has the versatility to line up across the line, having played 751 snaps at defensive end, 428 at the three-tech, and 177 at nose tackle.

WR Jordan Addison, USC

The Chargers need to look to add an explosive element to the offense next off-season. Addison could be just that. The former Biletnikoff winner, Addison, has put up 54 receptions for 810 yards and eight touchdowns. In 2021, he posted 1500 yards and 17 touchdowns at Pittsburgh. While undersized at 6-foot and 170 pounds, Addison has the speed, elite route running skills, elusiveness after the catch, and strong hands of an NFL receiver.

Other players to watch for

LT Braeden Daniels, Utah

EDGE Gabe Reid, Utah

RT Sataoa Laumea, Utah

CB Mekhi Blackmon, USC

OL Andrew Vorhees, USC