{"id":345489,"date":"2025-10-31T12:00:17","date_gmt":"2025-10-31T12:00:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/345489\/"},"modified":"2025-10-31T12:00:17","modified_gmt":"2025-10-31T12:00:17","slug":"usc-football-vs-nebraska-trojans-enter-critical-stretch-of-games","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/345489\/","title":{"rendered":"USC football vs. Nebraska: Trojans enter critical stretch of games"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

With the second bye behind them and USC<\/a>\u2019s season at a crossroads, Lincoln Riley<\/a> has spent the better part of two weeks focusing his team on what\u2019s in front of them \u2014 a stretch of three winnable games \u2014 and not behind them \u2014 a demoralizing defeat at Notre Dame<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In doing so, the Trojans coach borrowed a well-worn rallying cry, one that traces back 2,000 years. Riley told his team, they had to \u201cburn the boats.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve put ourselves in great position, and we\u2019ve got to be a really forward-focused team right now,\u201d Riley said. \u201cThings can get pretty fun from here if you really get on a run. This team is capable of that. They know it. We know it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Considering the stakes, it\u2019s an apt enough metaphor. Any hope of USC staying alive in the College Football Playoff<\/a> conversation hinges on leaving Lincoln, Neb., with a win. And that will, at the very least, require presenting a much better product than before the bye, when USC\u2019s defense gave up over 300 yards on the ground to Notre Dame.<\/p>\n

That loss has left a notably bitter taste with the Trojans \u2014 especially on defense. This week, sophomore linebacker Jadyn Walker<\/a> said he felt the group \u201cdidn\u2019t come out ready to play\u201d and wasn\u2019t \u201chungry\u201d enough against Notre Dame. Defensive tackle Jide Abasiri<\/a> said fixing USC\u2019s issues on defense meant \u201chaving our minds right.\u201d For the second time in three weeks, USC returned to the basics on defense during the bye in an effort to iron out those issues.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou study for a test, you\u2019re not gonna be nervous,\u201d Abasiri said. \u201cJust keep studying, I guess.\u201d<\/p>\n

The time for studying is over. The final exam for USC and its defense is a five-game gauntlet, starting on the road in one of the Big Ten\u2019s more hostile environments. It\u2019s just as much a critical test for the team as its coach, who has won just two true road games \u2014 at Purdue<\/a> and at UCLA<\/a> \u2014 during the last two calendar years.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe continue to put ourselves in position to win these, and I feel like we\u2019re doing the things on a daily basis that ultimately lead to winning,\u201d Riley said. \u201cWe\u2019re here and we\u2019re pushing that notion, and I just see us getting closer and closer to that as we go on. That\u2019s where my confidence is.\u201d<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s what you should watch for when No. 23 USC (5-2 overall, 3-1 Big Ten) faces Nebraska (6-2, 3-2) on Saturday at 4:30 p.m. PDT (NBC, Peacock).<\/p>\n

A heavy dose of Emmett Johnson \"Nebraska <\/p>\n

Nebraska running back Emmett Johnson carries the ball against Northwestern on Oct. 25.<\/p>\n

(Bonnie Ryan \/ Associated Press)<\/p>\n

After watching Notre Dame\u2019s duo of Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price steamroll USC\u2019s defensive front, Nebraska offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen surely smells blood in the water. In Emmett Johnson, he has one of the Big Ten\u2019s best backs, a bruising tackle-breaker who has become a bigger part of the Husker offense as the season has worn on.<\/p>\n

He\u2019ll no doubt be a huge part of the plans for Holgorsen, who knows Riley better than most any other coach in college football, save maybe his brother, Garrett, at Clemson. Presumably, Holgorsen will hope to keep the ball out of USC\u2019s hands, grinding out long drives with Johnson.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe set ourselves up the rest of the season to see a lot of run game,\u201d safety Bishop Fitzgerald said. \u201cThis week, making sure we can stop that will be huge for us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Johnson isn\u2019t easy to bring down. His 44 missed tackles forced, per PFF, ranks third in the Power Four among running backs.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe runs really hard,\u201d Fitzgerald said. \u201cHe\u2019s usually always going to break the first tackle. He just plays with an edge. He\u2019s not necessarily a blazer, but once he hits that edge, he can make a guy miss and he can get a lot of yards. So I think it\u2019s about stopping him and surrounding the ball.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s just that easy. Or maybe not.<\/p>\n

Pick up the pressure \"USC <\/p>\n

USC defensive coordinator D\u2019Anton Lynn stands on the sideline during the third quarter of a win over Michigan State on Sept. 20.<\/p>\n

(Luke Hales \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n

USC led the nation in sacks through the first month of the season. But in both of the Trojans\u2019 losses, the pass rush \u2014 or lack thereof \u2014 was part of the problem. After producing 24 pressures in a win over Michigan State<\/a>, USC tallied just 25 in its next three games combined.<\/p>\n

Nebraska offers a golden opportunity to get that right. The Huskers have allowed 26 sacks, second-most in the Big Ten.<\/p>\n

\u201cI do think we\u2019ve shown growth and we\u2019ve gotten better,\u201d defensive coordinator D\u2019Anton Lynn<\/a> said of the pass rush. \u201cBut we\u2019re not satisfied.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nebraska quarterback Dylan Raiola has been sharper this season than when he came to the Coliseum in 2024. His completion rate is up almost 6%, and he already has 17 passing touchdowns, compared to just 13 last season.<\/p>\n

But Raiola has a tendency to hold the ball too long. At times, that has paid off with big plays. Other times, it has derailed drives.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt puts a lot of pressure on us,\u201d Lynn said. \u201cWhen he\u2019s holding onto the ball, he\u2019s not looking to scramble. He\u2019s keeping his eyes downfield.\u201d<\/p>\n

The key to counteracting that for USC? Putting as much pressure on him as possible.<\/p>\n

Something has gotta give<\/p>\n

USC has the top passing offense in the nation, averaging 10 yards per attempt and 326 yards per game. Nebraska boasts one of the nation\u2019s best pass defenses, with just one opposing quarterback even reaching the 160-yard mark against them.<\/p>\n

The Huskers have yet to face a quarterback quite like Jayden Maiava. Maiava\u2019s first start at USC came last season against Nebraska, and he has improved leaps and bounds since \u2014 notably in his ability to avoid crippling mistakes.<\/p>\n

That\u2019ll be at a premium against a Nebraska defense that has swallowed up quarterbacks this season.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s making a lot of right decisions right now,\u201d Riley said this week of Maiava. \u201cIf he keeps doing that, we\u2019re going to have a chance to win every game.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"With the second bye behind them and USC\u2019s season at a crossroads, Lincoln Riley has spent the better…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":345490,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5123],"tags":[20698,1582,276,262,1910,2961,224,5337,7088,1245,3336,19414,11346,62441,5950,3007,36418,56014,2452,80883],"class_list":{"0":"post-345489","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-los-angeles","8":"tag-ball","9":"tag-ca","10":"tag-california","11":"tag-defense","12":"tag-game","13":"tag-la","14":"tag-los-angeles","15":"tag-losangeles","16":"tag-lot","17":"tag-nation","18":"tag-nebraska","19":"tag-notre-dame","20":"tag-quarterback","21":"tag-riley","22":"tag-season","23":"tag-team","24":"tag-trojans","25":"tag-usc-football","26":"tag-week","27":"tag-yard"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115468673107111060","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/345489","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=345489"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/345489\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/345490"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=345489"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=345489"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=345489"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}