Lincoln Riley Gives Key Injury Updates That Could Impact Michigan Game

The USC Trojans are just days away from taking on the Michigan Wolverines at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on Saturday, Oct. 11. USC coach Lincoln Riley spoke to reporters after practice on Tuesday, revealing some key injury updates.

What Lincoln Riley Said

USC Trojans Lincoln Riley Michigan Wolverines Injury Update Elijah Paige Big Ten Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Alex Graham — Sep 27, 2025; Champaign, Illinois, USA; Southern California Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley before an NCAA football game with the Illinois Fighting Illini at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ron Johnson-Imagn Images | Ron Johnson-Imagn Images

How Has Alex Graham Progressed?

“Good. Had a good bye week. That kind of worked out perfectly for him. Able to get a lot of reps. We’ll keep repping him. Hope to get him ready to help us here in the near future. I don’t know if it will be this week, but it’s actually been a little faster than expected given the nature of the injury. Healing has gone well. We’re going to get him ready as fast as we can.”

Elijah Paige Update

“I think he’s got a chance (To Play vs. Michigan). It’s not a shoe in, it’s just kind of been a nagging injury that he’s dealt with. One of those things you just try to manage as best you can. The bye week was defiantly helpful…Just got to see how the rest of the week plays out.”

Michigan Defensive Line vs. USC Offensive Line

“They’re good (Michigan's Defensive Line). They’re different. They had just the two dominant inside players last year and they got good inside players this year too. But those guys were obviously exceptional players. They’re experienced at the edges. Got guys that have played a while for them, made a lot of plays. Then you just see their depth. They have a lot of really good depth."

“They are able to rotate guys, able to play multiple guys is somebody is out…I think we’re in a much different place on the o-line then we were at this time last year with some of our depth and I think some of the improvements we’ve made. We’ve got a really good group, they got a really good group, it should be a fun battle.”

MORE: Texas Longhorns Replace USC Trojans with Historically Underwhelming Achievement

MORE: Why USC Fans Will Love Sherrone Moore's Latest Comments On Sell Out Against Michigan

MORE: USC Coach Lincoln Riley Addresses Big Ten Officiating, Missed Penalty

Work Put In By Secondary During Bye Week

“I think they’ve worked hard. We’ve gotten some people back, healthier, more reps. It’s been good to have a few more bodies out there throughout the week and we attacked everything head on. Things that we had to improve at; leveraging the ball on the perimeter, being aggressive in coverage.”

Tight Ends and Running Backs in Pass Protections

"We’ve been pretty steady. We’ve done a good job for the most part protecting our guys back there. We got some experienced players that understand what we’re doing and how we’re trying to protect. Guys have been pretty physical but you know we’re certainly going to have a good challenge on that this week."

Backup Center Now

"Kaylon Miller would be. His versatility, we knew it was going to be important for us at some point."

Sherrone Moore’s Comments on USC’s Sellout Crowd Being Because of Michigan

"I don’t really care what he says. We’re looking forward to playing."