Lincoln Riley utilizing extra protection for Miller Moss in Big Ten play
USC Coach Lincoln Riley discusses a previous play with quarterback Miller Moss during a timeout in the second quarter of the Pac-12 Championship Game against Utah Friday December 2, 2022 at Allegiant Stadium. (Lynn Harrington/stayaliveinpower5)
LOS ANGELES — The Trojans are starting to navigate through the Big Ten meat grinder, and their coach anticipates there’ll be a higher pursuit towards his quarterback from opposing defenses.
Miller Moss is quickly establishing himself as one of the best quarterbacks in the Big Ten, and currently leads the conference in passing yards per game. Coach Lincoln Riley understands what comes with the territory every time Moss drops back to attempt a pass.
Which is why he’s urging the big boys up front to step up their protection as USC approaches its’ third game in Big Ten play. After all, the league is extremely physical, especially when it comes to the pass rush, and Riley is making adjustments for Moss on the fly.
“It’s part of playing the position, I’m sure he’d love to leave any game with the quarterback not taking any hits, but that’s not always reality,” Riley said. “We’ve played two good teams, two good defensive football teams, it’s going to happen some, obviously it’s something we want to clean up, and that involves everybody.”
USC (4-1) will travel on the road again to the heart of Big Ten country to take on Minnesota Saturday. The hostile environment at Huntington Bank Stadium will be a major test for Moss and the offense. Not to mention the Golden Gophers rank fifth in the FBS in total defense, and they’ll be looking to make life hard for Moss it the pocket.
Riley is going to need Moss to keep his head on a swivel, considering Minnesota’s defense will try to bring pressure from different areas on the field. He wants everyone on the same page, because communication won’t be as easy as playing at the Coliseum. Practice is going to be intense all week leading up to the contest, and Riley wants to see chemistry from all parties involved.
“Schematically we’re involved in it, Miller is involved in it, the receiver, the backs, the tight ends and the o-line, obviously everybody,” he said.
In order for USC to keep Minnesota’s pass rush at bay, Moss will need to get the ball out of his hands faster, with some screen passes. Taking snaps out of the shotgun instead of under center will also help. An efficient ground attack will go a long way in terms of executing the play-action pass.
Running back Jo’quavious Marks showed he can do damage after he rushed for 103 yards against Utah State, and 100 against Michigan. Minnesota’s defense was leaky against the run a couple of weeks ago against Iowa, and allowed Kaleb Williams to rush for 206 yards and three touchdowns.
That means Riley has options with prepping for how the Trojans can attack the Golden Gophers’ defense. In return that should help minimize Moss taking unnecessary hits. It’s still going to come down to efficient blocking, execution and Moss needs to identify all of the disguised blitz packages. It’s no mystery that No. 11 USC is currently tied for 13th in the Big Ten, and 67th nationally in sacks allowed.
“Sometimes you’re going to take some hits when people really try to blitz you a lot, like what happened multiple times the other day, and there are times they’re going to bring more than you can block,” the 41-year old coach said. “That’s part of it, that’s part of playing the position, we’re not trying to advocate for it, but certainly you can’t always completely avoid it.”
At the end of the day the Trojans are seeking their first Big Ten road win of the season, and the Golden Gophers are standing in the way. Despite Riley anticipating a grinder, he’s going to do his best to keep Moss healthy and the chains moving for USC’s offense.
