Everything Lincoln Riley said after USC's upset win over Rutgers

This time the tone after the game was completely different. There's no question how USC managed to let a late lead slip away. No questions about the Trojans' inability to finish games or doubts about coaching decisions – none of that on Friday night.

USC started strong and finished confidently, securing a 42-20 victory over Rutgers at the Coliseum and ending its three-game losing streak.

With the much-needed win, the Trojans evened their record to 4-4 overall (2-4 in the Big Ten).

“Super proud of this football team. Just everything we've been through, turning around here in a short week, playing the way we did, with our backs against the wall, obviously missing some key players – we had a number of guys, there are no excuses in “This program, our coaches and players, all week long – we had a really good week – and it was fun to see us play well and separate each other,” Riley said.

“I think one of the big drivers for us in this game is that we know the reputation of coach (Greg) Schiano and Rutgers and being the most physical team was very, very important to us. We were playing around with it this week and I thought, “Our guys rose to the occasion and played a really physical game of football through and through. So obviously it's great to get the win, the locker room is full of excitement and it's fun to see the guys with big smiles on their faces and we'll look of course we want to take advantage of this extra day in the coming week and hope that we can use it to our advantage to freshen up a little and prepare for the long run.”

Watch the full postgame press conference here and scroll down for a full transcript of Riley's postgame comments.

Opening comments from Lincoln Riley:

“Super proud of this football team. Just everything we've been through, turning around here in a short week, playing the way we did, with our backs against the wall, obviously missing some key players – we had a number of guys, there are no excuses in this program, our coaches and players, all week long – we had a really good week – and it was fun to see us play well and separate In this game, we know the reputation of Coach Schiano and Rutgers, and It was very, very important to us that we insisted on it this week and I thought our guys rose to the occasion and just played a really physical game of football. So it's great all around to get the win, the locker room is full of excitement , it's fun to see the guys with big smiles on their faces and we'll try to take advantage of this extra day in the coming week and hope to use it to our advantage to freshen up a little and ourselves to prepare for the stretch run.”

What did Makai Lemon show you and when did he really click this fall that made you want to get him more involved in the passing game?

“Yeah, obviously he had the big kickoff return, that was a really good, aggressive play, and then I thought he just made some really competitive catches, some big plays after the catch, he just played fast, he played confidently. It was kind of like that. It was the night the ball found him and he made some really good, aggressive plays so he continues to improve as a player.

This week, do you feel like you learned something or understood something that can help you when it comes to team separation?

“Yeah, we just played better. We didn't make some of the mistakes that plagued us. I know it sounds kind of simple, but we did it – we just played better. We took care of the ball, we did. “We had to do a good job on special teams. It wasn't our best third-down game – I haven't seen the final stats yet – but we did a good job of limiting them. We did a really good job in the redzone defense and made some big stops there, so We simply won football on all three sides.

​How did Makai come to be brought back there for the kickoff, and how big of a spark did that 80-yard return provide?

“It was a big spark. “Yeah, we always felt like we had several good returners and I think the feeling was to let Zach really focus on punt returns and give Makai a chance to really focus on the kickoff.” That was a great move by Coach Dougherty and his team that obviously paid off.”

What did you see in the team's determination as they cut the lead to 8 in the third quarter?

“I thought we were still very confident, similar to all of these games. I didn't feel like we rocked, and obviously I think we came back and had the big pass to Lemon there at the start of the drive.” So, no, there was no panic in that group in any of those games, and that wasn't the case tonight either and we did a great job closing it down.

How did you feel the team adjusted after a number of defensive players?

“We did a good job. You know, we got out to an early lead and that probably put them in a position where we would see a little bit more shooting, but no, our guys did a good job. We had to move some around.” After the end of the Maryland game, we got thinned out real quick, so we had to be pretty creative, and I give credit to Coach Belk, Coach Lynn and those guys. We made a few mistakes there, but we were competitive , tackled well and made some of the big plays when it mattered most.

How did you play the O-line?

“The boys played well. It was a physical front. We're getting better, it seems like we're playing a little bit better every game, and I thought we could mix the running game and the throwing game there. “The first half was a big key to keeping that momentum going.”

Is it unprecedented what happened with the defensive injuries?

“I don’t know, I mean we had a lot. I don't know if it's unprecedented. I've had better years with it, sure, but it's just part of it. Just like every team has done.” Your challenges and we know what our challenges are. Our guys really came out on top defensively and hopefully we get a chance to get some of those guys back guys that will grow up and learn a lot from this win and the way we played tonight. We are also a no-excuses program, we have a no-excuses mentality at the moment – whatever comes against us, as if we don't care at all. We just keep going.”

What makes Woody Marks unique among all the RBs you have coached?

“He’s a versatile player, that’s what he is. You see how physically he runs, you have the ability to break big runs, he obviously catches the ball well, he's good at passing. He's just a very versatile, very complete defender who has a really good attitude, he works hard every day and competes all the time. That's obviously a great mix for a running back.

What makes Makai Lemon stand out as a receiver?

​”Kind of the same answer. He's one of those guys, I don't know if he's great at anything yet, but he's really good at a lot of things. Route running, all those things, he's got a lot of room as a player, to continue to develop, but his skills aren't all that great. You just don't look at it and say: he's a very versatile receiver, he's got some yards behind him on the catch, he's strong and he'll just continue to grow and get better become.

Is there anything you did differently as head coach tonight?

“No, I stayed the course. I think when you're faced with adversity, it tests your resolve and tests how committed you are to the process and the things you're doing. And the last few weeks have made me even more confident about where I am and what we're doing.

“I also want to congratulate Dave and the guys at the Dodgers. This is fucking awesome – I mean, how cool is it that all of these things are happening in our city. So great for them. We're obviously pulling after these guys.