Southern California suffered arguably its worst loss of the Lincoln Riley era to Wisconsin on Saturday, Oct. 24, as the Trojans scored just seven points in a 24-7 loss — the fewest points by a Riley-coached team in L.A.
USC players added a layer of indignity to the loss between the third and fourth quarters, as several Trojans could be seen participating in Wisconsin's famed "Jump Around" tradition. The display occurred at a time USC trailed the Badgers 17-7.
Interesting choice here by USC.#Badgers pic.twitter.com/hYLJlsgpse
— Evan Flood (@Evan_Flood) October 25, 2026
It's uncertain what exactly went into USC trying to participate in the tradition.
Perhaps the Trojans were merely trying to drum up some energy for a team that was in desperate need of it. Or they were showing the home crowd at Camp Randall Stadium they wouldn't be intimidated. Maybe House of Pain just put out a verified banger, and USC couldn't help but participate.
Regardless, the fact the display came in a demoralizing loss won't endear the Trojans to their fanbase or neutral observers.
Jayden Maiava did what he could for the Trojans at quarterback, completing 31 of 58 passes for 258 yards and a touchdown, but also threw two interceptions. The USC ground game couldn't get going at all: USC, as a team, rushed 25 times for minus-17 yards, thanks in part to Maiava rushing for negative-57 yards on five carries (sack adjusted yardage).
USC's defense was arguably worse. It allowed Colton Joseph to complete 12 of 14 passes for 58 yards and a score, while the Badgers rushed 43 times for 142 yards and two scores.
"Just flat-out didn't play good enough on any of the three sides of the ball," Riley said in his postgame news conference. "Didn't coach good enough. Made critical errors on the road against a good football team that you can't make. We had our opportunities. ... But you did the things that you can't do on the road."
Among them: partaking in an opponent's tradition while you're trailing by 10.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: USC joins Wisconsin’s ‘Jump Around’ while losing, and fans won’t love it
