His two best runners had just been carried through the Coliseum tunnel, a nightmare scenario for a team that had finally found its groove on the ground when coach Lincoln Riley during the break they asked how USC will move forward without the bulk of its field. He grinned.
“I might have to hold the ball a little bit,” Riley joked during the NBC broadcast.
USC managed to get through this win over Michigan without much reinforcement when running back. But with the depth of the field decimated – and the toughest stretch of the Trojans' schedule ahead – Riley and his staff will have to figure out how to proceed, starting Saturday at Notre Dame.
USC will be without its leading rusher Waymond Jordan for at least a month after he injured his ankle in the second quarter Saturday. Jordan, who currently ranks third in the Big Ten in rushing, had surgery Monday and is expected to miss four to six weeks.
USC running back Waymond Jordan is tackled by Michigan linebacker Ernest Hausmann on Saturday at the Coliseum.
(Marcio Jose Sanchez/The Associated Press)
That timeline, if implemented, would provide Jordan with a path toward a potential return before the Trojans' critical trip to Oregon, when they likely need him the most.
The prognosis was less positive for older adults. Eli Sanderswho was third on USC's offense in all-purpose yards when he left Saturday's win early in the first quarter with a knee injury. Sanders, who transferred to USC from New Mexico in the offseason, was ruled out of the season Monday after just six games.
Following Jordan and Sanders, USC was on track to have its best high school season in two decades. Reggie Bush and LenDale White last time wandered around the rear of the Trojans. As it stands, USC is on track to rush for nearly 3,000 yards and score 40 touchdowns by midseason. (Of course, that's still 10 points behind the 2005 Thunder and Lightning duo.)
In their place redshirt freshman, King Miller Came to an easy lead on Saturday, rushing for 158 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries against Michigan. But without anyone being able to enchant him, he was clearly starting to run out of gas.
The situation was so dire that USC violated conference rules to prepare sophomore running back Brian Jackson at halftime, despite ruling him out before the game. Jackson ran for 35 yards and a touchdown, all in the fourth quarter.
Assuming Jackson is healthy, the two backs will likely share the workload in USC's game Saturday against the Irish, who have been tough against the run in recent weeks.
NC State managed just 51 yards on 28 carries in last Saturday's loss to Notre Dame, while Boise State failed to top three yards per carry in a three-touchdown loss the previous week.
Jackson at least has some experience, having appeared in all 13 games as a freshman last season. When USC was without its top two running backs in the Las Vegas Bowl in December, Jackson stepped in and carried the ball 16 times for 66 yards and a touchdown. The short stint was impressive enough that he was named to the Doak Walker Award watch list before this season.
USC running back King Miller carries the ball against Michigan on Saturday at the Coliseum.
(Marcio Jose Sanchez/The Associated Press)
The sophomore brings a completely different style to USC's rushing attack than either Jordan or Sanders. At 235 pounds, he packs a much more powerful punch.
“My mentality as a running back is to never let the first guy get you down,” Jackson said in August. “I know people who like to hit home runs and big runs. But sometimes it gets dirty. I feel like that's my biggest mindset. You're the guy that's going to have to get the tough yards when your team needs you the most. You're the one that can push us forward. That's just my mindset when the ball gets in my hands.”
Miller has hit home runs so far in his first season at USC. He rushed for a 75-yard touchdown in Week 1 and 41 yards in Week 2. Against Michigan, he had touchdown runs of 49 and 47 yards.
“He makes big runs every day,” Riley said earlier this season. “That's exactly what he does.”
USC's remaining running backs haven't faced significant challenges.
The Trojans' two other scholarship running backs, freshmen Harry Dalton and Riley Wormley, were recovering from injuries during Saturday's game.
USC running back Brian Jackson attempts a touchdown against Michigan on Saturday at the Coliseum.
(Marcio Jose Sanchez/The Associated Press)
Dalton carried the ball three times during the Trojans' Week 2 win over Georgia Southern, but hasn't been heard from since. Wormley has been sidelined since last September when he suffered a season-ending knee injury as a senior.
Dalton will likely be the next man up after Miller. A USC preseason camp standout, Dalton was a high school quarterback in Virginia this time last year. As a freshman, he still had three more games to play before becoming ineligible for a redshirt.
Desperate times may call for desperate measures in USC's backfield. But that's not the message running backs coach Anthony Jones sent to his group.
“He always preaches to us, ‘Whatever we want, we can do,’” Miller said. “The whole room is amazing. No matter who you put in there, we always believe we can rock the world.”
