Lincoln Riley updates status of Max Williams ahead of Washington game

USC safety Max Williams, who has been out since suffering an injury early in a loss to Notre Dame, is on the verge of being available to play again, head coach Lincoln Riley said on Thursday. Riley said the next 48 hours “will tell the tale” on if Williams can play on Saturday.

The Trojans play a massive game at home against undefeated Washington. And Riley shared some insight into Williams potentially being back to help his much-maligned defense against the Huskies.

“He’s not to the point today where we would say he’s for sure going to be able to participate. So hopefully he can make some progress and even if not in a full capacity, maybe help us a little. The next 48 hours will tell the tale,” Riley said.

Williams suffered a lower-body injury early in the game against Notre Dame on Oct. 14. After going to the injury tent, he went to the locker room while putting minimal weight on his right leg as he moved.

Getting Williams back would be a big boost for the Trojans secondary, which this week learned safety Zion Branch would be out for the season.

The overall tone from Riley was hopeful, even if he’s not certain Williams will be back in the lineup this weekend.

“Max is doing well. He’s definitely improved. Hasn’t been — hasn’t been a full participant this week but has been able to do a little bit more than he was last week. We’re hopeful to have him available in some capacity with Zion’s injury,” Riley said.

Riley has plenty of respect for the Huskies

It hasn’t been smooth sailing for USC over recent weeks, but a win over the Huskies could put them right back on track. Ahead of the clash in Week 10, Riley elaborated on his initial thoughts on Washington going into the game.

“Good football team,” Riley said, via Trojans Live. “They’ve done a great job this year. Quarterback’s obviously played at a high level, and does a great job of distributing to their play-makers, which they’ve got a really good group of play-makers. Runs the offense really, really well. You could tell, obviously he has a lot of experience with Kalen and his system, and you can tell. It shows up. Playing at a high level.

“They’ve got some really, really good players defensively as well. It’s a very, very talented roster. You’ve got a number of guys that are projected pretty high NFL draft picks. You know a couple on both sides of the ball. So a good group. A good group. A good challenge. I mean, like it should be here at the end. Two good football teams going at it. It’s going to be great.”