Three questions USC must answer after tough loss to Michigan

ANN ARBOR – For a brief few seconds Saturday night, at the postgame podium, USC’s Miller Moss put his pointer fingers where his brows met his eyelids. He rubbed, slowly, as if trying to shake a headache. As if trying to clear the fog.

They’d come from the West Coast for their first taste of the Big Ten, and fought valiantly Saturday, amid the endless yellow hues of the tailgates that rippled throughout Ann Arbor. But quarterback Moss walked away from the presser solemnly, driven to the turf too many times to count against a ferocious Michigan front, his program’s starry-eyed start in Vegas and Los Angeles suddenly bruised and battered by the reality of the Big Ten.

And USC returns home, with Wisconsin coming to the Coliseum next Saturday, with a host of calamities erupting from a 27-24 defeat to Michigan. Here are three crucial questions these Trojans must answer to stay on track.

What on Earth can be done about this offensive line?

In late July, after two years of patchwork offensive fronts made up of Clay Helton-era holdovers and transfer-portal imports, USC offensive line coach Josh Henson declared it was time for his young underclassmen to flourish.

“I mean, at some point, you’re going to take young guys and say, ‘It’s time for that guy to make the jump, to make the leap to where he’s performing at a level that’s good enough for us to go win championships,’” Henson said then.

They weren’t good enough, on Saturday. Far from it. Astonishingly far. According to Pro Football Focus, USC gave up a pressure on 40% of Moss’ dropbacks Saturday, simply overwhelmed by Michigan’s front.

Redshirt-freshman Elijah Paige, one of USC’s most integral pieces as a starting left tackle, struggled to contain Michigan’s Josaiah Stewart off the edge and was benched in the second half. Fellow redshirt-freshman Tobias Raymond entered in his stead at right tackle, with veteran Mason Murphy shifted to LT, and showed flashes in his snaps but gave up a few pressures and a hit. Sophomore right guard Alani Noa was yanked, too, at times, for redshirt-freshman Amos Talalele.

Henson, now, has trouble on his hands. Does he continue showing faith in Paige’s development to protect Moss’s blind side? Does he roll with Raymond at right tackle and shift Murphy over, a redshirt-junior who gave up six pressures Saturday? Does he completely re-shuffle things and move mainstay center Jonah Monheim back to a tackle spot?

There’s no ready-made answer, and USC’s offensive-line consistency will be one of the storylines of the season.

How does USC replace Lake McRee?

When tight end McRee went down in a heap Saturday after a low hit, his limp off the field was a gut-wrench, the broadcast showing the USC stalwart breaking into tears on the sideline.

It was devastating for McRee, universally praised and hailed for his drive in returning in just six months from an ACL tear suffered before December’s Holiday Bowl. And devastating for USC, a clear sign the program may need to plan for an immediate future without one of their most important offensive pieces.

McRee has been a key cog in expanded two-tight-end sets in Riley’s offense, excelling as a run-blocker in addition to his prevalence as a pass-catcher. It will likely mean more snaps for 6-foot-4, 250-pound redshirt-freshman Kade Eldridge, who had already seized snaps after gaining considerable strength in the offseason.

“It was evident that we definitely needed to have him somewhere on the field,” McRee said of Eldridge on Tuesday.

Does USC pivot from the screen game?

Questions about Riley’s game-calling against LSU, mismanaging the clock on an end-of-first-half-drive, were masked by the uproar of a massive Week One win in Vegas. But they came roaring back with the loss to Michigan.

The most glaring issue was a late-fourth-quarter drive up 24-20 where USC ran the ball only once in a three-and-out and gave the ball back to Michigan – setting up the eventual go-ahead touchdown – in less than a minute. But Riley’s continued utilization of a quick-hit screen game proved ineffective against Michigan’s defense, and hasn’t quite clicked all season. According to PFF, Moss is averaging 5.0 yards-per-attempt on screen balls, which make up about 23% of his overall attempts.

USC’s offense expanded in the second half Saturday, when Riley turned to more diversified concepts. And it will be a point of emphasis for young receivers like Ja’Kobi Lane and Duce Robinson to continue establishing themselves as downfield targets, creating more dimension to the Trojans’ attack.