USC looking to close gap when it comes to losing close games

Losing close games is an aspect that particularly frustrated USC fans last season. There is a lot that goes into a fourth-quarter game that goes down to the wire. While a lot of blame will often be placed on a play during the closing moments, in truth, these are the types of matchups that often in hindsight see something seemingly insignificant end up costing the win or loss either way.

For the Trojans as they are preparing for 2025, this is something that all from the players and staff know needs to be improved.

While conventional wisdom would state that the antidote is only to have a large lead heading into the last quarter, that is not going to be a luxury in the Big Ten.

BIG teams do a good job of muddying up things on the field and staying within reach. Even if USC was in a different conference that had a different style of play, it is an unreasonable expectation to have the Trojans be so good that the final quarter is then viewed as a formality. Eventually, everyone has to play in a close one.

Words from USC head coach on the issue

As shared by the LA Times' Ryan Kartje, coach Lincoln Riley believes that the key will be discipline. That is an interesting word that can often be among some of the all-time favorite corporate 'buzzwords' that are simply said to sound good and give the appearance of making progress.

As stated by the Trojan HC, the actual fix comes from continuously giving the same effort levels and focusing on the needed aspects of the task at hand, without skipping any steps.

Ultimately, small mistakes tend to pile up and then become compounded. Not then being in a position in which someone needs to make a spectacular play somewhat speaks to the mentality of building a fourth-quarter lead. Going a step further, by executing and consistently following the game plan and avoiding the mental errors, whatever the end result ends up being can be one that all, even USC fans, then accept.