On Saturday, the USC football team fell 34-24 to rival Notre Dame. It was a frustrating loss for the Trojans, who had plenty of opportunities to take control of the game, but simply could not do so.
What did we learn from the loss? Here are five key takeaways:
Run defense was horrible
Notre Dame rushed for more than 300 yards against the USC defense. To say that is inexcusable would be a massive understatement.
Lost the lines of scrimmage
In last week’s victory over Michigan, USC was the more physical team. This week against Notre Dame, that was not the case. The Irish dominated the Trojans along the lines of scrimmage.
Questionable play calling
Lincoln Riley had several highly questionable play calls on offense. Most notably, with the Trojans driving and trailing by three points in the fourth quarter, he called for a reverse that featured wide receiver Makai Lemon attempting to throw a pass. The play did not work, and Lemon fumbled (likely due to the wet weather), flipping the game’s momentum.
Could not convert
USC was 6-for-14 on third-down conversions and 0-for-2 on fourth downs. The Trojans could not pick up a first down when they needed one, and it proved to be costly.
Turnovers again an issue
For the third game in a row, USC quarterback Jayden Maiava threw a head-scratching interception. It was one of three turnovers the Trojans committed in the final 17 minutes of the game in addition to a turnover on downs. USC’s offense has been great for most of this season, but when it mattered most on Saturday night, it came up short.
This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: Five takeaways from USC football’s frustrating 34-24 rivalry loss to Notre Dame
Reporting by Adam Bradford, Trojans Wire / Trojans Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
