Miller Moss picking up the pieces for USC’s offense after road loss
USC quarterback Miller Moss scrambles outside of the pocket to attempt a pass downfield during the second quarter against Minnesota Saturday October 5, 2024 at Huntington Bank Stadium. (Lynn Harrington/stayaliveinpower5)
MINNEAPOLIS — After suffering their second road loss of the season, the Trojans have to go back the drawing board and fix some issues on offense before resuming Big Ten play.
Quarterback Miller Moss completely understands the situation at hand, considering he’s coming off his worst performance of the year. Moss threw for a season-low, 200 yards and USC’s offense turned the ball over three times against Minnesota.
Not to mention the Trojans committed a season-high, eight penalties, including three from the offense that happened before the snap. USC was scoreless in the first and fourth quarter, plus its’ 17 points were the program’s lowest output over the past 28 games.
Which is why Moss is taking accountability for the shortcomings on offense. Although the loss hurts, the gunslinger wants to build off the positive aspects from the game. After all, the Trojans rushed for 173 yards, which was their highest mark so far in conference play. USC also led in total offense, plays, third down efficiency and time of possession.
Moss tried to put the team on his back, but couldn’t carry them to the finish line and knew he left some plays out there on the field.
“I thought they (Minnesota) did a really good job offensively of limiting our possessions, it seemed like it was pretty intentional,” Moss said. “They played a pretty soft game, I thought we gashed them with the run game, so stuff was there.”
Moss led the Trojans on three scoring drives, and threw a three-yard touchdown to wideout Duce Robinson. It gave USC its’ only lead of the contest. However, Moss expected more out of himself, and wanted to deliver in the clutch. It’s no mystery that the turnovers were costly too. Running back Quinten Joyner lost a fumble on a promising drive. Moss threw two interceptions, including one in the final minute of the game, which was frustrating to Coach Lincoln Riley.
“I think all three of our turnovers tonight were in plus territory when we had good drives going,” Riley said. “When you have a kicker like we do, those are points every single time you feel like when you get over there.”
There were some suspect calls by the officials throughout the evening, and the 50,913 fans in attendance played a factor. Still, Moss isn’t looking for excuses, and is eager to be more efficient for the offense. It all comes down to execution, so the Los Angeles native will be focusing on that aspect in practice.
“Offensively I felt like we were moving the ball up and down the field,” he said. “Obviously we didn’t put the points up to reflect that.”
Saturday’s loss dropped the No. 11 Trojans completely out of the AP Poll, and they have now lost two of their past three games. USC (3-2) will be back at the Coliseum Saturday for a showdown with No. 4 Penn State. Moss understands that he needs to make better decisions with the football, and expects an intense week of practice. During this time of adversity, a lot of blame goes towards the quarterback, and it’s going to be his responsibility to rally the troops.
There’s still a lot of football left to be played, and USC can potentially climb back into the conference race. The Trojans have to continue navigating through the Big Ten meat grinder though, and the road only gets tougher.
