The Trojans have been a disaster this season.
USC needed to beat unranked Wisconsin Saturday in order to keep their College Football Playoff hopes alive. That did not happen as the Badgers stunned USC, 24-7.
The special teams unit played a pivotal role in the meltdown. USC missed two pivotal field goals in the second-half on back-to-back drives.
Perhaps even more embarrassing for the program is the offense’s inability get points on the board after the bye week. The Trojans mustered only seven points against Wisconsin.
The Trojans were playing from behind since the first quarter after quarterback Jayden Maiava threw two interceptions within the first three USC possessions of the game. Saturday’s game was Maiava’s worst performance of the season.
The loss puts head coach Lincoln Riley’s future with the program in jeopardy in the middle of his fifth season with USC.
The unfortunate reality is the Trojans have looked the same year in and year out since Riley’s arrival to Southern California. The team looks undisciplined, has poor offensive line play, bad special teams and displays an overall lack of toughness.
Next, the Trojans will have to face No. 3 Ohio State and No. 6 Indiana after a harrowing loss to the unranked Badgers. Things are not looking good for USC as the squad will essentially have to win out the remainder of the year.