Southern California’s Lincoln Riley has coached in four games as a Big Ten member, including a pair of conference contests. The move from the Pac-12 to the Big Ten has been full of adjustments, and one is getting used to the new league’s game officials.
So far, Riley is not complaining.
“At least up to this point, what we’ve seen: This league lets you play a little bit more,” he said. “There’s less ticky-tack things called.”
Riley might get an argument from Gophers coach P.J. Fleck on that point, given last week’s hubbub at Michigan, but this isn’t the USC coach’s first time in walking the delicate line when speaking about officiating.
“I don’t think I got fined there,” Riley joked about his assessment.
Riley and Fleck will face off Saturday night at Huntington Bank Stadium when No. 11 USC visits the Gophers. It’s a crucial game for Minnesota (2-3, 0-2 Big Ten), which has lost two consecutive contests, is on a six-game conference losing streak and desperately needs to stack wins if it’s to avoid a second straight losing season.
It’s also an important game for the Trojans (3-1, 1-1), who have Big Ten title and College Football Playoff aspirations and don’t want to absorb a second loss.
The Gophers and Trojans share a common result. Two weeks ago, USC traveled to Michigan and left with a 27-24 loss. Last week, the Gophers left Michigan Stadium with a loss by that same score. The Trojans fell to the Wolverines when the hosts drove 89 yards in 10 plays to score the decisive touchdown with 37 seconds left. The Gophers lost when their 21-point fourth-quarter rally ended with 1:37 left after their successful onside kick recovery at the Michigan 37-yard line was ruled offsides.