Indiana seizes CFP lifeline vs USC, pushes Lincoln Riley toward unwanted history

BLOOMINGTON, IN – The defending champs will get a chance to defend their College Football Playoff championship, after all.

Curt Cignetti's Indiana Hoosiers broke a 13-all second-half tie against visiting USC with 14 unanswered points in a season-defining moment for both teams.

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No. 5 Indiana 27, No. 14 USC 13, in front of 54,336 fans inside sold-out Memorial Stadium.

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The Hoosiers, No. 9 in CFP rankings and winners of 25 of their past 26 games, notched the must-have quality win that could send them back to the Big Ten Championship Game, as well as the CFP.

They intercepted Trojans senior quarterback Jayden Maiava three times, twice in the final 10 minutes.

The first of those late picks thwarted what could have been USC's game-tying touchdown when Isaiah Jones baited Maiava into an ill-advised throw at the goal line. Jones easily picked it off, raced a few yards, fumbled and recovered to give Indiana possession.

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The Hoosiers (9-1, 6-1) then delivered the knockout, as quarterback Grant Wilson hit all-everything playmaker Charlie Becker for a touchdown after the Trojans' defense sold out to stop the run.

Maiava's final interception reduced the situation to simple mathematics: Indiana is headed toward a third straight CFP appearance, while USC (7-3, 4-3; No. 18 in the CFP) remains without a berth during Lincoln Riley's tenure, which began in December 2021.

Repeatedly, Indiana had opportunities to take control in the opening half. The Hoosiers missed a field goal, settled for another after a goal-to-go situation and then could neither pad nor protect a 10-3 edge in the waning moments.

After Nico Radicic gave the Hoosiers a seven-point advantage, the defense responded by picking off Maiava at midfield.

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Following Wilson's seven-yard completion inside Trojans territory, his next pass was intercepted over the middle and returned to the Indiana 40-yard line.

Maiava then hit Kayden Dixon-Wyatt, who stutter-stepped past his defender and broke deep down the right sideline for a 51-yard connection to Indiana's 10. Zacharyus Williams hauled in Maiava's next pass to send the teams to halftime tied at 10.

But USC couldn't find enough answers in the second half, doomed by a missed field goal and Indiana's resurgent physicality in the running game.

Now, the Trojans confront the likelihood of another Playoff-less season under Riley, which would be a fifth straight, while watching crosstown rival UCLA remain undefeated and safely tucked inside CFP projections.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Indiana seizes CFP lifeline vs USC, pushes Lincoln Riley toward unwanted history