The USC Trojans face a lot of uncomfortable questions and tension points after their performance against Arizona State. Their sloppy effort against ASU doesn’t mean they’re doomed or that they are bound to fail in 2023, but it does mean they have a lot of work to do and need to show they can play a complete game against an opponent which is better than Stanford, Nevada, or Arizona State.
Sure, USC put a 49-3 half on Stanford, and it looked great, but Stanford just isn’t very good. Is it great that USC looked very strong against a bad team? Yeah … but it doesn’t mean a whole lot in the bigger picture. Looking great against good teams is when championship chops begin to emerge, and a fan base can truly begin to trust a team.
We needed to have a tough conversation on our latest podcast. We did not avoid the difficult questions. We did not spare this team and coaching staff from criticism. That’s how it ought to be after a game in which the staff did not have the Trojans fully prepared to play.
Listen to our Arizona State review and think about what is being said. Ian Hest co-hosted and produced the show:
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USC win over ASU felt like a loss in many ways.
Alex Grinch is not quieting his critics, and bigger tests await.