The Trojans lost again! This time, they lost a highly competitive game to the Washington Huskies, 21–26. The record did not, however, lessen the public’s dissatisfaction with head coach Lincoln Riley, who is currently in hot water. Riley is a victim! Given that USC last defeated No. 4 Washington 8 years ago in 2016, perhaps he had high hopes for Saturday’s match. But see, in their class, the Trojans are a miserable 4-5 behind teams. Hurry up. It nearly feels as though Riley’s tragedy is imminent.

Given the Trojans’ current situation, Riley appears to be the main cause of USC’s playoff hopes failing, as the team boasts talented players, coordinators, and other staff members. “I believe we have good coordinators and as far as defensive coordinators, as far as offensive coordinator, we want, we don’t know the capability because Lincoln Riley calls the plays. So I mean he’s the head coach man, you know, we can say over and over and over it’s the players. Lincoln Riley is not on the field. He didn’t drop the pass, he didn’t fumble, he didn’t jump offside. It’s not his fault, he’s not physically on the field. But it all boils down to the head coach, man, you know what I’m saying? All those decisions, all that discipline, all that preparation falls on the head coach,” said Christopher Lovejoy in a recent YouTube video on November 4.”

However, is the head coach solely to blame for this season’s dismal performance? Perhaps not entirely, but in part, sure. Now, the team will not be eligible for the Bowl game under Riley’s leadership if they lose two or more games.

“We don’t know what we’re doing with Lincoln Riley. We don’t know if he’s going to step down. We’re pretty much believing that they’re not going to give him a 70, 80 million dollar buyout. I mean it’s just the third year, the record’s getting worse and worse and worse. As I predicted, I see us losing at least two more games. If we lose two, two more games, I mean five and seven, no bowl is terrible,” Lovejoy remarked.

To put it plainly, it seems like the head coach lacks the ability to motivate the players to want to win and to put in the necessary effort on every play. Pete Thamel of ESPN stated, “People are unhappy about USC,” during the College GameDay podcast. But now it’s difficult to split with the HC. Riley would be due $90 million if one decided to terminate him, according to the source data. Approximately $90 million. It’s comparable to a supersized Jimbo (Fisher) buyout. It seems as though Riley and Trojans are somewhat trapped together at the moment.

It doesn’t seem like a smart idea to fire Riley, though. Does he bear the sole responsibility for Washington’s defeat? Wait, there’s another name that has been mentioned in relation to the loss.

The reason for the loss against the Huskies

Riley’s Trojans have had a long, chilly night on November 2. Rain and the freezing wind tested the nation’s best pass defense, and the QB suffered as a result. Even though their opponents eventually won, the Huskies were held back by their defense. After taking up most of the field in a few seconds, the Trojans were late to take advantage of the opportunity, as they always are, and finished up on 4th down.

The Trojans’ hopes of making the bowl game were severely damaged when quarterback Miller Moss, their star player of the night, did not perform well. Moss threw 50 passes, his third time reaching the 50-point milestone, but struggling to move the offense. What about the yards, though?

With only 293 yards and two interceptions on all those attempts, the quarterback lost his supporters at that point. However, the team must concentrate on the next game since there is no space for error, and we cannot change what has already transpired.