USC Coach Lincoln Riley Reveals A Season-Ending Injury Update

The USC Trojans are days away from kicking off their next game against the Northwestern Wildcats on Friday, Nov. 7. USC coach Lincoln Riley revealed to reporters some key injury updates.

What Lincoln Riley Said

USC Trojans Lincoln Riley Injury Updates Northwestern Wildcats Big Ten Waymond Jordan Jamaal Jarrett Killian O' Connor King — Oct 14, 2023; South Bend, Indiana, USA; USC Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley talks on his headset in the third quarter against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at Notre Dame Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-Imagn Images | Matt Cashore-Imagn Images

Floyd Boucard, Killian O’ Connor Injury Updates

“Guys are getting better. Not ready to give a status on them yet, but definitely rapidly improving.”

Defensive Tackle Jamaal Jarrett's Injury Update

“Jamaal ended up having to have a season-ending surgery, so he'll end up missing the rest of the year for us.”

Running Back Waymond Jordan's Timetable

“There's kind of medically ready, and then you've got to factor in, obviously, the position that the guy plays, you know, in a position where he's going to move around and obviously do a lot of cutting and all that. So, I mean, he's definitely improving quickly, but I would say certainly still at least a couple of weeks away, if not more.”

MORE: Northwestern Coach David Braun Doesn't Hold Back On USC's Offense

MORE: The Latest On USC's Recruiting Class As Early Signing Period Looms

MORE: College Football's Winners and Losers as USC Wins, Texas Surges in SEC

On Kaylon Miller Filling In

“He played awesome. He really did. He was physical. He pass pro'd well. He was really physical in his pull game, was really sharp assignment-wise, which, again, I know I've mentioned several times, was all the more impressive because he really hadn't been able to take a lot of practice reps at guard. So, yeah, thoroughly impressed. It's not like he just came in and kept it together. Like, he came in and really played at a high level.”

Takeaways From Elijah Paige in Return

“He was pretty good. I thought a few plays in there showed a little bit of rust where you could tell he hadn't been in there for a while. But he had some really physical plays. I thought as the game kept going, he got a little bit better and got more settled in. And mentally was pretty good as well. So yeah, it was a solid performance. As he gets back into it, we'll definitely expect and he'll expect better, but it was definitely a good one to build on.”

Confidence of Desman Stephens

“We were really pleased. I thought it was his best game as a Trojan in terms of just how aggressive, how downhill, how physical he played. He really took a big step from the Notre Dame game to this game, and we challenged him. And that's part of anybody, but especially a young guy that's earned a role like that where you're playing a lot of snaps.”

“I mean, playing middle linebacker USC is a pretty damn big deal, you know, and so stepping in there and not just getting the reps, but playing the level that we want with the confidence, the physicality, the energy that he played with the other night. Like it was, it was a great step for him. It was important for our team, but it was a great step for him, you know, in his journey as a player. And I think he'll just get better and better from it.”

On USC Running Backs Coach, Anthony Jones Jr.

“Yeah, another coach here that I think has been outstanding of just having the entire room ready to play. I mean, there's not many positions where you lose your top two guys just like that. And then, you know, have other guys continue to produce…I give him a lot of credit.”

King Miller’s Success

“It was good to see, you know, the Michigan game, he popped some big runs. It was cool to see the other night, the aggressiveness and physicality that he played with. And I think, you know, after getting a decent amount of carries the previous couple weeks and really kind of getting into some of these big boy games.”

“I think you just start to learn and you start to get a feel for how the game goes and how you're going to get tackled and how we're going to block and how we need you to run through tackles and the physicality. And I just thought he was a more, just a more confident, complete player…That’s just going to continue to come with experience.”

Strongest Coaching Staff of Riley’s Career?

“It's a really good staff. It is. I feel like we've got obviously guys that have been a lot of places and done a lot of things in this game, and I think there's a good experience factor that some of us and bring to these guys. But I just, I think it speaks more just kind of overall culture…Seeing it come to fruition is a great, healthy step for this program. “

On Northwestern Defense, Linebackers

“It's a really good linebacker group, smart group. They just seem like they're always right where they need to be, you know, tough and physical. You can tell they communicate really well. You don't see a lot of bust. And I just, I see that from them defensively.”

“They don't give you much, you know, they don't give up. They don't give up a lot of big plays. You know, they play really sound. When somebody makes a play against them, like they really earned it. And that's, I think, a sign of really good defensive play. And they're certainly getting that out of a lot of positions, obviously, including to the linebackers.”