Kirk Herbstreit praises Miller Moss, Lincoln Riley after USC win over LSU

USC‘s 27-20 win over LSU on Sunday captured the attention of college football fans around the nation, including Kirk Herbstreit. During an appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show,” the ESPN analyst raved about the Trojans’ stellar performance.

“Did you see Miller Moss bringing a little bit of juice to that game? I didn’t know he had that in him. That was really cool to see. He was bringing some fire,” Herbstreit said. “Lincoln Riley reminded America — especially Paul Finebaum, who I guess is taking some shots at him — he reminded America he’s a pretty good coach.”

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The win was only Miller Moss’ second career start, with his first coming against Louisville in USC’s bowl game win last season. Moss was spectacular in Sunday night’s win, completing 75% of his pass attempts for 378 yards and a touchdown without throwing an interception.

The game wasn’t only an introduction for Miller Moss but also a statement from Lincoln Riley. Despite boasting quarterback Caleb Williams behind center in 2023, USC finished the season with an 8-5 overall record and a 5-4 mark in conference play.

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The 2023 season was an underwhelming campaign from Riley and Co. Their win over Louisville was their only ranked victory and, as previously mentioned, Moss started that game. Herbstreit believes Riley’s success with the ball in Moss’ hands may not be a coincidence.

“I’ll say this — Caleb Williams is awesome. Good luck in Chicago. Gonna do great things, but a coach likes to call plays, to sequence plays, because he knows what his quarterback’s gonna do,” Herbstreit said. “It’s so tough on a playcaller to try to get into a rhythm when Caleb is doing some magic. With Miller Moss, it’s like, ‘OK, we’re going to run the counter. We’re going to set that play-action. We’re going to rush down. We’re going to hit that.’ It pieces together.

“I think it was a reminder of how good Lincoln Riley is with a quarterback like Miller Moss and that’s something to really watch as this season progresses, is that relationship with the headphones, with Lincoln Riley and Miller Moss.”

Now, Moss and Riley will look to lead the Trojans to their first appearance in the College Football Playoff. On Saturday, USC will have a chance to turn heads again as it squares off against Utah State at 11 p.m. ET. The game will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network.