USC football bold predictions for Las Vegas showdown vs. LSU
We finally made it, week one of the college football season is here. There are a lot of good matchups to keep an eye on this weekend, and one that you won’t want to miss will be on Sunday between USC football and LSU football. The Trojans and Tigers are both ranked to start the season, and this is a crucial year for both teams. They will be playing at Allegiant Stadium on Sunday.
The new college football year got started with week zero on Saturday and things got going with a bang as #10 Florida State was knocked off by Georgia Tech. It was a fantastic start to the season (sorry Seminoles fans) as the game came down to the wire, but now we have a full slate of college football to take in over the course of five days.
Week one action will begin on Thursday and there are a lot of intriguing matchups to take in. Deion Sanders and Colorado will be taking on North Dakota State, and there are a few ranked teams in action as well. NC State, Kansas, Utah and Missouri will all start their season on Saturday as well.
There’s no doubt about it, Sunday’s matchup between USC football and LSU football is one of the best of the week. Let’s take a look at where both of these teams are heading into week one of the 2024 college football season. You might notice that they are in somewhat similar boats.
Lincoln Riley is feeling some pressure
USC football head coach Lincoln Riley has some pressure on him this year after a disastrous 2023 season. Year one went well for Riley and the Trojans as they made it to the Pac-12 title game in 2022 and won 11 games in the regular season. They were expected to once again contend for a College Football Playoff spot in year two, but they didn’t come close at all to meeting expectations.
The Trojans had the best player in the country last year in quarterback Caleb Williams, who was also the reigning Heisman winner, and they ended up going 7-5. That wasn’t Williams’ fault at all. He had a good year, but the defense was one of the worst in all of college football. The Trojans simply couldn’t stop their opponents, and even in games when Williams and the offense played their best, it was incredibly difficult to win.
Now, things are getting tougher for USC. They are in the Big Ten, and competition is a bit more fierce than it was in the Pac-12. It certainly doesn’t help that they have to take on a top-15 LSU team to start the season. This is going to be a challenging year, and if the defense hasn’t improved drastically, it’s going to be one that USC fans are going to want to forget.
The pressure is on for Lincoln Riley this year. If the Trojans have another disappointing season like last year, he is going to be in some trouble.
Brian Kelly has a big year three as well
Brian Kelly and Lincoln Riley both made similar moves before the 2022 season as they left top schools for other top schools. Riley went from Oklahoma to USC, and Kelly went from Notre Dame to LSU. Both had good first years, and both had disappointing second years. However, the Tigers’ disappointing 2023 season was a lot better than USC’s.
LSU football made it all the way to the SEC title game in Brian Kelly’s first year, and that was a huge accomplishment. They beat Alabama, and they won their division. Because of that, expectations for the team were through the roof in year two. They started off the season ranked in the top-five, but they got embarrassed in week one against Florida State. The Tigers ended up finishing the regular season with a 9-3 record. Not bad, but certainly not as good as fans were hoping for to begin the year.
Now, Brian Kelly has a huge year three ahead of him, just like Lincoln Riley. Both of these guys need to have good seasons. Year three is when you can really start to tell if someone is the right person for the job, so this season is incredibly important.
Both of these coaches have a bit of pressure on them, and they are squaring off against each other in the season-opener. It should be a great game, and whoever gets a win is going to be letting out a big sigh of relief. Here are three predictions for Sunday’s showdown:
Both teams will score 40 points
Don’t be shocked if this game ends up being a complete shootout. Both of these teams had explosive offenses last season with defenses that couldn’t get the job done in their biggest games. Both teams will be breaking in new QBs, but they should have the necessary weapons around them to be successful. Both new QBs got starts in their bowl games last year, and both put up some impressive numbers.
With Caleb Williams and Jayden Daniels in the NFL, this QB matchup isn’t as good as it would’ve been last year, but Garrett Nussmeier and Miller Moss might end up putting on a show.
Miller Moss with throw for 300+ yards
© Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports
When Miller Moss got the start for USC football in the LA Bowl last year against Louisville, he ended up throwing six touchdown passes, and he threw for over 300 yards. He showed in that game that he is capable of running an explosive offense, and it’s going to be exciting to see him back in action this weekend. Expect Moss to have a big opener.
LSU will win by two scores
Unfortunately for USC football, it just doesn’t seem likely that the defense will be able to make the drastic changes that needed to happen. The Trojans’ defense was bad last season. The improvements that they need to make are big ones. They will probably be better, but USC will probably still have a really good offense that can’t win big games because of their defense. LSU football will get a couple more stops than USC and get a comfortable win on Sunday.
USC and LSU will kick things off from Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas at 7:30 PM ET on Sunday night. The game will be airing on ABC and the Tigers are currently favored by 4.5.
The post USC football bold predictions for Las Vegas showdown vs. LSU appeared first on ClutchPoints.
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