USC head coach Lincoln Riley is still confident in his Trojans. With his back against the wall and his job potentially on the line on Halloween night when Ohio State touches down in Los Angeles, Riley claimed that USC can beat any team.
Riley claimed that every game is a make-or-break game after the Trojans lost 24-7 to Wisconsin in Madison. His team is now 6-2 after being bludgeoned by the Badgers.
"Every game makes or breaks you. I mean, that's college football. This isn't the NFL. Every game is big and really important. All the games we've won to get to this point have makes or breaks. So every game is important," Riley said postgame.
"This game was important. We didn't take care of business. But there's a lot of parity right now, and the toughest teams can battle back from tough losses. So I have a lot of confidence in this team, and I have a lot of confidence that, when we're at our best, we can beat anybody. But we've got to play our best, and we've got a lot of work to do to get ready for the next week (against Ohio State)."
This one actually is make-or-break for Riley. In every way imaginable.
Luke Fahey returns to SoCal for major Ohio State opportunity
Mission Viejo product Luke Fahey gets the chance to show Riley that he went wrong by not giving him a look coming out of high school after putting up legendary numbers in CIF play. Fahey will be stepping in for injured quarterback Julian Sayin, with OSU's CFP hopes in his hands.
A homecoming cookout of USC on United Airlines Field at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum would ease anxiety for Buckeye Nation. There are legitimate questions about whether or not this offense can withstand losing Sayin, given how up-and-down the run game has been.
Against the Trojans, Fahey could ease into the gig. USC's pass rush is weak. Its defensive front oftentimes generates less pressure than the secondary. The Trojans rank No. 109 in the country in passing yards per game, ceding 239 per game. Gary Patterson isn't doing well in his return to running a defense.
If Fahey doesn't have a strong start to his time as the Buckeyes' QB1, there will be serious panic. Ryan Day and Arthur Smith will come under fire for not being prepared to replace their starting quarterback. Tavien St. Clair is already behind schedule for not being ready yet in this exact scenario.
The 2014/2015 CFP says hello. Ohio State is supposed to weather those kinds of storms.
USC, Oregon look like easier challenges than previously thought
The next two weekends were supposed to be scary. Ohio State's season was supposed to be make-or-break in October and November, starting with the Indiana game and through to the Oregon game on November 7.
The Hoosiers turned out to be as good as advertised. The Trojans and Ducks, not so much.
USC and Oregon lack the offensive firepower many expected them to have and have also struggled to contain many defenses. The Buckeyes could be the Grim Reaper for both former Pac-12 squads over the next two weekends.
We'll see if Fahey can keep this season on schedule after one of the worst-case scenarios actually happened against Indiana.
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