Times of Troy writer Ryan Kartje is out sick this week, but we didn’t want USC fans to miss extended coverage of the Trojans’ win at Penn State. Times sports editor Iliana Limón Romero is filling until Kartje returns.
USC coach Lincoln Riley lingered at Beaver Stadium on Saturday night, soaking up a hard-fought moment of vindication.
Riley celebrated out-coaching Penn State’s Matt Campbell like he won a national championship, offered gleeful remarks to NBC and reporters at his postgame news conference and shook the hands of USC fans who ventured to Happy Valley to catch the Trojans’ first road win over Penn State.
“It’s one of my favorite wins as a head coach no question, for so many reasons,” Riley said after the Trojans’ 31-23 victory. “Obviously phenomenal atmosphere, as good as it gets there in college football, so give credit to Penn State, their fans, but really proud of our team, man.”
And even Riley’s harshest critics had trouble arguing this wasn’t a meaningful win. A serious test his team passed. The kind of beast Riley and the Trojans have struggled to slay.
Yes, the Nittany Lions now sit 3-3 overall and 0-3 in Big Ten play, but White Out games are their super power. When an announced crowd of 114,419 fans commits to wearing white and roaring in unison, it’s hard for any visiting team to pull off a victory. USC had never won in State College, Pa., and Riley noted seemingly no one outside of his team believed the streak would end Saturday.
How did USC do it?
The Trojans figured out how to overachieve in every area that was considered a weakness entering the matchup.
Maiava lights up Nittany Lions
USC quarterback Jayden Maiava delivers an option pitch under pressure from Penn State’s Caleb Bacon on a play that scored a touchdown Saturday at Beaver Stadium.
(Isaiah Vazquez / Getty Images)
Last week’s Times of Troy highlighted in great detail the dropoff USC quarterback Jayden Maiava experienced since a shutout of Fresno State on Sept. 4.
Riley was asked this past week whether Maiava was playing through an injury and the head coach insisted no.
It now seems the real injury problem was the one that sidelined freshman receiver Trent Mosley for two games.
With big-play threats Mosley and Tanook Hines on the field, Maiava looked like an elite Big Ten quarterback dealing the ball in locations only his two ace receivers could catch.
Maiava completed 21 of 33 passes for 301 yards, three touchdowns and no turnovers.
Mosley had nine catches for 111 yards and one touchdown. Hines had four catches for 82 yards and another score. The passing attack opened up enough space for King Miller to earn 102 yards and a touchdown in 19 carries.
Of course fans have come to expect big highlight plays from a Riley offense, but Maiava was unquestionably tentative the past few weeks and the offense wasn’t clicking. It hit top gear at Penn State.
USC’s Christian Pierce punches the ball out of the hands of Penn State’s Brett Eskildsen, forcing a fumble in the fourth quarter at Beaver Stadium on Saturday.
(Isaiah Vazquez / Getty Images)
While Riley has caught considerable heat this season, the USC defense directed by Gary Patterson wasn’t far behind.
The Trojans have shown marked improvement with Patterson shifting from the sideline to the press box the last two games.
Patterson had always worked from the sideline, but he also was always surrounded by staff members who knew his system well. Riley said the goal of the move was to speed up communication.
Desman Stephens II returned from his one-game suspension and led USC in tackles with nine. Luke Wafle and Kennedy Urlacher earned sacks. Jahkeem Stewart played after being listed as a game-time decision on the injury report and recorded a quarterback hurry.
Jontez Williams, Prophet Brown and Elijah Newby were credited with breaking up one pass apiece.
Riley can deliver in crunch time
USc coach Lincoln Riley talks with quarterback Jayden Maiava during the Trojans’ win over Penn State Saturday at Beaver Stadium.
(Barry Reeger / Ap Photo/barry Reeger)
During an NBC interview minutes after the game ended and during his postgame news conference, Riley made it clear he heard those chants calling for him to be fired.
And he was well aware few expected USC to win at Penn State, with betting odds favoring a rebuilding Nittany Lions squad by 1 1/2 points.
Riley’s clock management and use of timeouts, along with his play-calling, unquestionably got the best of Penn State’s Campbell and helped seal the USC win.
Opening the second half with an onside kick set the tone that everything was on the table for USC.
When Riley kept his offense on the field on fourth and four at the USC 13 late in the fourth quarter. Campbell said he called timeout with 4:15 remaining to be sure he put his team position to go get the ball.
Riley was delighted Campbell burned his final timeout and sent on his punt team.
After his defense forced a turnover, Riley’s offense burned time off the clock and lined up for fourth down when Penn State jumped offside.
For once, the Trojans didn’t flinch when it mattered most. USC finished with three penalties for a loss of 25 yards, a remarkable improvement for a team that has racked up a lot of ill-timed penalties during Riley’s tenure.
USC was awarded the first down and took a knee to run out the clock on a victory.
USC’s Kameryn Crawford and Luke Wafle celebrate with fans after their win over Penn State Saturday at Beaver Stadium.
(Barry Reeger / Associated Press)
The Trojans celebrated in the rain before starting a bye week.
“I was not surprised at all that we played well,” Riley said. “I felt like we really had one of the best weeks of prep that we’ve had since I’ve been here. I thought team had a great mindset coming in.
”… I’ve only been a head coach at two schools. They’ve both been blue bloods. … Blue bloods are unbelievable. The advantages far, far outweigh the disadvantages, but the disadvantages at blue bloods are the outside noise is always going to be way over the top, no matter what’s happening. And your ability to deal with that as a coach and then your team is critical if you want to have success in these jobs.
“And I thought our team blocked out everything. Our team knows how good of a team we have in that locker room and didn’t flinch.”
House of Troy ‘Chapter 4: Higher Power’ episode drops this week
Lane Kiffin was stunned when he was fired on the tarmac at Los Angeles International Airport at about 3 a.m. on Sept. 29, 2013.
He called his wife, who was equally surprised by the abrupt end to his tenure leading the Trojans.
“And I remember saying, I do not want to wake up tomorrow,” Kiffin recounts in the latest episode. “My life’s over.”
Kiffin helps provide an inside look back at the highs and lows of his USC era during Episode 4 of “House of Troy” available Tuesday morning at latimes.com/sports and everywhere you get your podcasts.
Olympic sports spotlight
The USC women’s volleyball team has been through some big changes, with coach Brad Keller missing matches Oct. 2 and Oct 4 because of an illness. USC announced on Oct. 5 Keller is taking personal leave and assistant Megan Moenoa is the Trojans’ interim head coach.
The Trojans (8-8, 2-4 Big Ten) earned a 26-24, 25-19, 25-22 road win over No. 15 Indiana (10-5, 3-3) in Bloomington on Sunday. It was Moenoa’s first win since stepping in for Keller.
Sophomore Abigail Mullen led USC with 11 kills, four blocks and nine digs. Freshman Milly McGee earned 31 assists, six digs and one kill.
Polling the people
Please note the following poll included voting before USC’s win over Penn State. The results do help illustrate the stress level Riley faced entering the game.
We asked “Will Lincoln Riley be USC’s coach in 2027?”
After 1,976 votes:
Yes, 42.9%
No, 57.1%
In case you missed it
Listen now: Podcast ‘House of Troy’ features inside look at highs, lows of USC Athletics
Lincoln Riley tunes out the criticism, makes bold calls in USC’s win over Penn State
No. 19 USC runs out clock on road win over Penn State
Trojans aim to prove they can stay poised amid constant pressure at packed Penn State
USC, UCLA push to extend West Coast dominance of Big Ten women’s basketball
USC coach Lincoln Riley says Jayden Maiava isn’t hurt despite dip in performance
Times of Troy: What’s going on with USC QB Jayden Maiava?
Until next time …
That concludes today’s newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email Ryan at ryan.kartje@latimes.com, and follow me on X at @Ryan_Kartje. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.