Momentum in L.A.
Inside USC’s most complete performance under Lincoln Riley — and why this might be the night everything shifted in Los Angeles.
A Moment Can Change Everything
A moment can change your life.
A moment can change a program’s trajectory.
A moment must have depth to sustain it.
For the USC Trojans, they may have just had that moment.
When Lincoln Riley was hired at USC, he stood before a standing-room-only crowd overlooking the LA Memorial Coliseum and declared that the Coli could once again be the Mecca of college football.
After an electric first season — one that saw the Trojans on the cusp of the College Football Playoff and Caleb Williams hoisting the Heisman — it felt like USC was on the verge of being “back.” The assumption was that titles, more Heisman’s, and Pac-12 domination (soon to be Big Ten) would follow.
None of that happened.
Two seasons later, the Trojans entered 2025 unranked and overlooked.
But if you’ve been around the program, one thing has been clear for the past 18 months: the foundation of USC football under Lincoln Riley has been more substance than flash, more humility than hype, and more work in the shadows than show in the spotlight.
I’ve said it for a while — this version of USC was building something real, even as close losses piled up. Most fans don’t want to hear about “foundation.” They want wins.
So Riley, Athletic Director Jen Cohen, Deputy Athletic Director Jay Hilbrands, and General Manager Chad Bowden just went to work.
Last night, their work showed up. USC dominated the line of scrimmage and beat Michigan 31–13 — the biggest win of the Lincoln Riley era. In a sellout at the Coliseum, the “Mecca” felt real again.
And for what it’s worth, our oldest son, Zayn, summed it up best after a Saturday night football date with my wife in downtown L.A.:
“Wild, Dad!”
Flying home from UCLA’s dominant win over Michigan State, my mind went back to Pete Carroll’s 2001 Trojans. The story goes: USC was struggling until DB Kris Richard took an interception to the house, flipping the game — and the program. Afterward, Carroll told the team, “We don’t have to lose from here on out.”
He was right. USC went 95–14 from that night on.
Was last night that type of moment for these Trojans?
Time will tell. The Big Ten slate is no small mountain. But the similarities are striking — the resources, the coaching, the talent. If they build on this moment, it could spark momentum that never stops.
Across Town: Momentum in Westwood
Speaking of momentum, across the country in East Lansing, UCLA rolled past Michigan State 38–13 under interim head coach Tim Skipper.