Lincoln Riley urges USC to embrace pressure when Trojans face Iowa
With just three weeks left in the college football season, Lincoln Riley finds himself in a situation he hasn’t been in since his freshman year at USC. His Trojans are still within reach of the College Football Playoff in mid-November. Their fate is still in their hands: Win from here and USC should make the CFP for the first time.
The stakes are incredibly high. And Riley isn’t hiding that fact from her team as it prepares to face No. 21 Iowa on Saturday. In fact, he says, he wants them to “seize” the opportunity that presents itself.
“This game that’s going to be this weekend, it’s not the same. It’s just not,” Riley said. “The more you win, the more important it becomes and the bigger the opportunities become. So our team is very aware of that.”
Pressure didn’t always bring out the best in Riley’s teams at USC. Last season, the Trojans blew five fourth-quarter leads and lost five of their last seven games in devastating fashion. In 2023, they have lost four of five to close the regular season. Even the 2022 run ended on a sour note in the Pac-12 title game after USC lost a second time to Utah, this time with a playoff spot on the line.
USC quarterback Jayden Maiava throws the ball against Michigan on Oct. 11 at the Coliseum.
(Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)
The road ahead isn’t entirely smooth this season either. Iowa has one of the best defenses in the country and a ball control style unlike any team USC has faced thus far. Lane Kiffin was USC’s coach when the Trojans last won on the road at Oregon (in 2011) – they’ve lost four straight there since. Even UCLA, in the midst of a strange season, is capable of playing the role of spoiler in their rivalry.
It’s a delicate balance for any coach to strike at such a critical time in the season, focusing on the bigger issues while keeping his team focused on the task at hand. But it’s a tightrope that Riley has walked this week.
“I think the biggest thing is just being where your feet are, being in the moment, not getting too far down the road,” quarterback Jayden Maiava said this week. “Just focus on what’s happening right now.”
Here’s what you should watch when No. 17 USC takes on No. 21 Iowa on Saturday:
