Caleb Williams and USC looking to bounce back against Utah
USC is coming off its first loss of the 2023 season in which quarterback Caleb Williams played his worst game as a Trojan. The bounceback challenge? A Utah team in the Coliseum that will be bringing arguably the best defense USC will see in the regular season.
The Utes rank No. 5 in the nation in scoring defense and have yet to allow more than 21 points in a game. They have the No. 2 rush defense and No. 45 pass defense and are tied for No. 6 in sacks per game. Utah will also be bringing plenty of confidence into this one after the Utes beat the Trojans twice last season and will be going up against an offense dealing with some pretty clear issues right now.
But Williams said Wednesday the team on the opposite sideline doesn’t have much to do with how the Trojans plan to regroup and prepare to take the field for their next opportunity.
“Another chance to go get a win on Saturday in the Coliseum,” Williams said when asked what getting a third shot at Utah means after the previous two losses. “We don’t measure wins. We don’t circle games…We’ve got to focus on this week, focus on this moment and go get this game.”
Williams said of what he’ll face on Saturday “a good defense led by a good coach.”
The biggest question facing the Trojans right now is how USC will play along the offensive line. USC allowed six sacks and 11 tackles for loss against Notre Dame. But an only slightly-smaller question dealing with the USC offense is who exactly was that playing quarterback for the first half against the Irish?
Williams said it was his “first bad game in college.” In a year and a half at USC, Williams hadn’t come close to costing the Trojans a game. In fact, he’d been by far the biggest reason the Trojans won most of them. But on the strength of what Williams called “three dumb interceptions,” Notre Dame rolled to a huge halftime lead and the Trojans could never fully recover.
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The bet from both Williams and head coach Lincoln Riley is that the USC quarterback will not play that way again.
“He’s always been really productive after either the team doesn’t win or he doesn’t play up to his standards and our standards,” Riley said this week. “He’s always been a guy that bounces back strong. He’s been a good leader, had great energy this week. He may have a tough one here and there, but I wouldn’t expect him to have too many.”
After losing to Utah in the regular season last year, Williams led USC on a five-game winning streak to finish out the season, including a three-game streak of being responsible for five touchdowns. His play eventually locked up the Heisman Trophy and had the Trojans one win away from the College Football Playoff.
The challenge is steeper this season, but the mindset is the same.
“We took our first loss, a lot of it being on me,” Williams said. “I for sure use it as motivation. The team uses it as motivation. We always talked about it. You don’t want to be in a situation where you have to use it as motivation. But we are in the situation now. So let’s use it as motivation. Let’s keep going. Let’s find ways to get better…You don’t let that one game bring you down and cause doubt.”
