The Athletic looks at the state of USC program heading into massive Oregon showdown
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After coming back to defeat Iowa on Saturday, the USC football team now faces a massive test this weekend when the Trojans travel up north to face Oregon. Win that game, and USC has a great chance to go to its first College Football Playoff. Lose, and while the season may still be considered a step in the right direction, it would eliminate the Trojans from contention for anything more than the Alamo Bowl.
So where do the Trojans currently stand going into their biggest game in several years. Coming off of the Iowa victory and heading into the humongous showdown in Eugene this weekend, Antonio Morales of The Athletictook a look at the current state of the USC program.
“Now that USC (8-2, 6-1 Big Ten) survived that dogfight [against Iowa], all that awaits is one of the biggest games of Riley’s tenure when USC travels to No. 8 Oregon (9-1, 6-1) next week,” Morales wrote. “Win and a trip to the College Football Playoff seems likely — in the 80 percent range, according to Austin Mock’s model. Lose, and the season could still be viewed as a positive step forward, if USC finishes 9-3, but that would be four years under Riley without a Playoff appearance.
“Next week will be the biggest game USC has played since the 2022 Pac-12 title game in Riley’s first season. That was a Trojan team that overachieved after a 4-8 season the year before. Even though USC lost to Utah in Las Vegas that night, it felt as though the program would have more chances to reach the Playoff in the coming years.
Two massively underwhelming seasons followed and showed just how difficult it might be for USC to get over that hump.
The stakes next week couldn’t be higher. It’s a chance for Riley to make a statement after losing some of his shine the past few years.”
Even with a loss Saturday, the season could still be thought of as a success if the Trojans beat crosstown rival UCLA the following week to finish the year 9-3. A victory, however, would indeed be a massive statement that would show Riley finally has the USC program headed in the right direction after back-to-back lackluster campaigns.
This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: Evaluating the state of USC football heading into massive Oregon game
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