It was less than four months ago, at the start of his third and most consequential season yet as USC’s coach, that Lincoln Riley walked off this same field at Allegiant Stadium, brimming with belief. His new quarterback had come through. His rebuilt defense had delivered. The statement he’d been searching for finally seemed to arrive in a season-opening win over Louisiana State.
“We know what we’ve been building,” Riley said that night. “I know we’re making progress.”
By late December, any signs of that progress had long since disappeared, and confidence in USC’s coach had faded along with it, lost along the way through a frustrating season that ended Friday night right back where it began.
But after a campaign filled with frustrating fourth-quarter collapses, the Trojans were able to return, however briefly, to the form they found back in September, coming from behind to beat Texas A&M in the Las Vegas Bowl 35-31 to finish their season 7-6.
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The bookends bore some striking resemblance, down to the breathtaking finish, as USC once again fought through a fourth-quarter deficit to earn a statement-making win. Even if this statement didn’t ring quite the same as the one in September.
Once again it took timely stops by USC’s defense and heroic performances from its top receiver, as Ja’Kobi Lane reeled in 127 yards and three touchdowns, giving him a dozen on the year.
But this time the Trojans quarterback had to dig his way out of a deep hole first.
Where Miller Moss had put on a show throughout the season opener, his replacement, Jayden Maiava, struggled to move USC’s offense at all at the start of a mistake-filled finale. Worse yet, he committed three head-scratching interceptions, each of which threatened to derail a Trojans offense that seemed to be hanging by a thread.
But before the questions about USC’s quarterback future could be posed, Maiava managed to move the Trojans down the field on one scoring drive … then another … then another. He hit Makai Lemon for two big plays downfield, then found Lane for his second and third touchdowns. In quick succession, USC erased a three-score deficit behind its quarterback’s cannon right arm.
Texas A&M fired back, as quarterback Marcel Reed worked his own magic on a go-ahead touchdown drive, sprinting his way into the end zone with less than two minutes remaining.
It was too much time to leave Maiava, who put an ugly start behind him to finish with 295 yards and four touchdowns. As he sat back in the pocket on third and 13, with the bowl hanging in the balance, he fired a pass downfield that found Lane, who stumbled his way through one tackle for a 33-yard gain. Maiava hit Lane again, just before the goal line, but a delay of game set the Trojans back to the seven with just 12 seconds left.
It was Kyle Ford this time who broke open on the slant, as Maiava fired a dart for the go-ahead score.
It was a stunning, fourth-quarter turn for the Trojans, who’d seemed well on their way to giving away the game through the first three quarters. With five minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, USC trailed by 17, with three turnovers to its name. But the Trojans defense stood tall from there, stopping the Aggies on three consecutive drives and giving Maiava just enough time to guide USC back into the lead.
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Texas A&M wasted little time in asserting its will at the start, marching down the field with a methodical, 16-play touchdown drive, while USC struggled to move the ball. None of the Trojans’ first three drives managed to extend beyond six yards, while the Aggies racked up 134 in the first quarter alone.
Opportunities kept being handed to USC, anyway. A 46-yard return from Lemon set USC up at midfield, only for the drive to screech to a halt. A diving interception from Kamari Ramsey set the Trojans up in similar position on the next possession … with similarly disappointing results.
At any moment, it seemed Texas A&M might break the game open. But a tipped Aggies pass in the end zone was picked off by Akili Arnold, giving the Trojans yet another chance to find their footing. This time they followed through, as Maiava found Lane streaking wide open across the field to tie it 7-7.
The Aggies stalled after that, managing a meager five yards in the second quarter. And yet USC still couldn’t seize control. One drive ended with a regrettable deep ball from Maiava that was picked off. Another was spent running down the clock just before half, only for USC to miss a 39-yard field-goal attempt.
Texas A&M would do their best to make USC pay after that. But it wasn’t enough, as the Trojans finished an up-and-down season on a high note, right where it started.
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
