Why Oregon loss, Desman Stephens hit has Lincoln

After 72 significantly depressing hours for his soccer program, Lincoln Riley took his place behind a lectern Tuesday and tried to guarantee that issues at USC weren’t as unhealthy as they regarded.

“There’s a lot of things to be proud of in this football program right now,” Riley assured. “Those that really look into it and look at what’s happening here will see that and understand that. There’s people on the outside that just don’t.”

But the optics at USC, since Saturday’s 41-27 home loss to Oregon, definitely couldn’t have been a lot worse for Riley. Because it wasn’t just that his Trojans misplaced a important recreation to a bitter rival, one framed for weeks — months, even — as a must-win. Or that in its wake, Ducks coach Dan Lanning had savaged him or his program a number of instances.

It was what occurred in the midst of that loss, as effectively as the reactions after, that only made issues a lot worse for USC.

The days since have prompted questions across the nation about Riley’s future at USC, where he’s halfway through his fifth season as coach. One individual acquainted with the scenario but not approved to communicate publicly on the matter told The Times that “all options are on the table” with Riley after the loss and the occasions of last weekend.

The chain of regrettable selections started the second Trojan linebacker Desman Stephens lowered his shoulder into the helmet of sliding Oregon quarterback Dante Moore in the second quarter Saturday night. Moore’s head slammed laborious into the ground, and he laid immobile for a number of minutes surrounded by medical personnel, until he was lifted onto a backboard and loaded into an ambulance that had pushed onto the sector.

The entire unsettling scene was made far worse by Stephens’ response in the speedy aftermath of the hit. After jawing with Oregon gamers, the junior linebacker was seen taunting the Oregon sideline and celebrating on his approach back to USC’s aspect of the sector. He continued high-fiving teammates while the Ducks surrounded their quarterback, who was identified with a concussion but no other critical accidents.

The next morning, both Stephens and his coach said in a assertion that his actions had been “unacceptable,” “inexcusable” and “completely inappropriate.” But after the sport, Riley first said he didn’t see Stephens have fun the hit. And when Riley was requested why Stephens was allowed to keep on the sideline for the second half, the coach responded, incredulously, “‘cause he’s on our football team.” He wished Moore effectively, but said nothing additional about Stephens or his vicious hit.

“It’s an easy answer,” said Petros Papadakis, a local radio host and former USC captain. “I understand you can’t have eyes everywhere as a head coach. But even if you didn’t see it, by the end of the game you know most of college football has turned against you in the last hour.

“The story didn’t go away because Lincoln didn’t get in front of it.”

It was clear that evening, among USC’s management, that the speedy response wasn’t enough enough. So the next morning, athletic director Jen Cohen met with Riley to focus on a suspension for Stephens. They settled on one recreation.

On Tuesday, Riley took a different tone. He said he was “disappointed with how [Stephens] handled it” and that he “needs to have more awareness.”

Riley also requested for understanding from those who have been important of Stephens, whom he described as “a young person who made a mistake.”

“Consider if that was your son,” he said, “how would you want it handled?”

But three days later, the school soccer world was still litigating Stephens’ hit. The story was still alive, in half, due to a short documentary from the sport, revealed by Oregon on Tuesday morning. In it was a clip that would unexpectedly make issues even worse at USC.

The clip is of USC’s radio sales space, where Pete Arbogast has been the Trojans’ play-by-play man for the past quarter century. From his perch in the Coliseum press box, Arbogast is portray the scene of the play when Moore was injured. Except, in this case, listeners heard a different account of his slide and Stephens’ hit than what occurred on the sector.

“He did not try to slide feet first!” Arbogast said in the second.

Arbogast went on to say that Moore “ducked into that hit. I did not see him put his feet out first. I saw him dive forward.”

When confronted with the replay moments later, Arbogast stood by what he said, claiming that Moore’s slide was “more of a knee-first slide.” Even Arbogast’s radio associate — former Trojan defensive deal with Shaun Cody — raised his eyebrows at the suggestion.

Both Arbogast and the college declined to remark on the scenario when reached by The Times.

Papadakis, who beforehand labored on the published with Arbogast, called it “a bad look,” but explained that Arbogast was “usually defending USC or trying to spin something positive.”

That job was left to Riley and his gamers on Tuesday. Though, some had been more convincing than others.

“This is a time of adversity, the best time to come together as one,” left deal with Elijah Paige said.

“Times like these you tend to see teams fall apart,” quarterback Jayden Maiava added, “but this team is such a tight team and we’re all bought into each other.”

Riley, meanwhile, pointed for the second day in a row to a stretch early in Saturday’s fourth quarter against Oregon, when the Coliseum had reached a fevered pitch and momentum appeared to be swinging in the Trojans’ favor.

Except, it never did. USC allowed two fourth-quarter touchdowns after that. Riley still tried to discover the silver lining.

“We didn’t get run out of the stadium,” Riley said. “There’s a lot of good on that tape. You don’t have a chance to win a game like that if you don’t do some things pretty well.”