USC football suffers unacceptable road loss at Maryland

Now, it is time for USC football fans to panic. Losing one-score games to Michigan, Minnesota, and Purdue is one thing but to blow a 14-point lead in the fourth quarter to lose to Maryland is completely inexcusable for the Trojans.

The Trojans now drop to 1-4 in Big Ten play and 3-4 overall on the season. Again, the Trojans saw a game come down to the closing minutes and again they couldn't make the winning plays.

This week, head coach Lincoln Riley will likely go back to his tired refrain that his team is right on the cusp of winning these tight contests. However, there is no solace after losing to a Maryland team that was just humiliated by Northwestern 37-10 a week ago.

So let's take a closer look at this shocking 29-28 USC loss. Here are some rapid reactions to what transpired in College Park on Saturday.

Special teams doom USC for the second week in a row

USC needs to iron out its kicking game if it hopes to start winning some of these one-score games. That's because for the second week in a row, a late kicking gaffe spelled doom for the Trojans.

Of course, last week, Michael Lantz missed a 41-yard field goal in overtime in the 33-30 loss to Penn State. Today, he had a late fourth-quarter field goal blocked by the Terrapins and returned past mid-field to set up the game-winning touchdown drive. Instead of putting the game away by giving USC a 31-22 lead in the final two minutes, the block gave the home team new life and the Terrapins took full advantage.

This year, Lantz is only 10/14 on field goals. That's just 71.4% and that is not going to cut it, especially given how many close games USC is playing this year. It will be interesting to see if the Trojans try a new kicker next week against Rutgers.

USC couldn't run the ball when it needed to

Entering the game, we talked about how USC should be able to move the ball through the air against Maryland and that happened. But the Trojans couldn't run the ball at all and that proved to be part of their undoing.

For the game, USC amassed only 82 yards on 24 carries. That's just 3.4 yards per rush. And when the Trojans should have been running the ball to grind out the clock in the fourth quarter, they couldn't.

After USC went ahead 28-14 with 13:31 remaining, the Trojans had two possessions before Maryland took the lead. On those drives, USC ran just 12 total plays for 37 yards.

The first of those drives took only 3:19 off the clock. On that possession, USC ran the ball only twice for four yards on the eight-play drive.

Then, after stopping Maryland on downs to take over possession at the Maryland 33, USC ran only four plays to take 1:15 off the clock before the blocked field goal that changed the game. On that drive, USC again ran the ball only twice for four yards. Had the Trojans been able to run the ball on either of those possessions, this game would have likely had a different outcome.

USC is lacking clutch QB play

When the final USC drive of the game was set to begin, the TV cameras zoomed in on QB Miller Moss who was grinning from ear to ear. He then proceeded to fail to lead the Trojans to any points as Moss again came up short when the game was on the line.

Against Michigan, USC led 24-20 late in the fourth quarter. The Trojans had the ball but went 3-and-out when they could have put that game away. On that drive, Moss was 0-2 passing. The ensuing drive for Michigan would result in the game-winning touchdown.

Against Minnesota, on the last two drives of the game, Moss was just 3-7 passing for 47 yards. Of course, he also threw the game-sealing interception on the Trojans' final drive.

On the Trojans' final drive of regulation against Penn State, he was picked off with the game tied at 30. That was another missed opportunity to win a close game.

Tonight, he failed to lead his team to the game-winning score in the final minute. This isn't to say that he needs to be benched as some irrational fans have suggested but the reality is that at some point, a good QB is going to put his team on his back and carry it to a win. So far, Moss has yet to do that for the Trojans in Big Ten play.

Lincoln Riley's seat at USC is growing hotter with each loss

There is just no way around it. Lincoln Riley's seat has to be getting hot. This is not what $10 million a year should get USC.

Riley is now just 5-9 in his last 14 games. That's over a season's worth of data points on his resume.

Last year, he went 8-5 with a former Heisman Trophy winner and the future No. 1 overall NFL Draft pick playing QB for him. Now, he doesn't have a Heisman contender playing the position and his team is 3-4 after losing to Maryland of all teams.

USC's struggles have to fall on Riley's shoulders above anyone else. He was brought to L.A. to win championships, not lose to Minnesota and Maryland.

USC isn't going to fire Riley this season because his buyout is massive. However, there is no doubt that the heat is turning up on one of the most high-profile coaches in the game. Riley is headed toward another mediocre season and his reputation around the country is taking a huge hit.