South Bend is the place where Trojan dreams go to die.

The 10th-ranked USC Trojans (6-1) went to Indiana on Saturday and were thoroughly humbled by the 21st-ranked Fighting Irish. USC was held to right around 300 yards of offense and held to just 20 points. The run game was completely neutralized. The pass game had its worst day of the year.

USC had been flirting with disaster in recent weeks, and the dam finally cracked Saturday night in a 48-20 loss to Notre Dame.

Here are three takeaways from the game.

Offense craters at the worst time

Notre Dame kicked a field goal with 3:40 to play that put it up by three touchdowns. The game was over then and there.

And at that point, USC had just 293 yards of offense. (It finished with 302.) Prior to Saturday, USC hadn’t been held under 350 yards of offense in a game since Lincoln Riley came to town.

The Trojans finished with an average of just 4.1 yards per play. That’s the worst mark in a game by the Trojans since November 2018. It’s also the worst per-play performance in a game during Lincoln Riley’s seven seasons as a head coach. You’d have to go back to September 2015 to find a worse day for a Riley-led offense.

USC turned the football over five times. Quarterback Caleb Williams threw three interceptions and was held to 199 pass yards. This was an offense that entered the game with just four turnovers on the season. Williams had only thrown one interception.

And USC just gave up at the end.

They lost their composure. Two fumbles came in the final four minutes.

USC actually outgained Notre Dame on the road. The Irish had consecutive scoring drives only one time all night, and both of those scores came off of USC turnovers. The much-maligned defense wasn’t the issue.

For once.

And, to celebrate that fact, the Trojans fell apart on the other side of the football.

Offensive line issues

Notre Dame pressured Caleb Williams constantly. The Irish finished with six sacks and 11 tackles for loss. The USC run game mustered 103 yards on 37 attempts. Austin Jones couldn’t get anything going. The gadget stuff for Zion Branch and Tahj Washington didn’t move the needle. MarShawn Lloyd had a huge gainer and then nothing.

USC’s offensive line was exposed in a major way.

This was a group that was rebuilt through the transfer portal in the offseason after key guys departed. It’s fair to ask whether the additions made were evaluation misses. But it’s also more concerning that USC may not have options on the bench to stop the bleeding.

Williams is running for his life and being brought down on plays that he escaped a year ago.

Williams was picked off on the Trojans’ opened drive. They punted on the next possession. None of the scoring drives featured the patented USC explosion. USC had just two explosive pass plays all game. The backs had two explosive runs.

When you can’t get any consistent push, you’re going to be stop-and-start on offense.

The closing stretch suddenly looks treacherous

USC’s final six games of the season always looked potentially problematic. Now, the closing stretch looks chock-full of landmines.

USC should beat Cal on Oct. 28.

You’d like to think USC can beat a Utah team without its starting quarterback at home next weekend, but that might not be as safe a bet as it looked a week or two ago.

USC has to face Washington. It has to play Oregon in Eugene, where the Ducks have been nearly unbeatable for years and years. And it has to face UCLA’s elite defense to close the year.

Does anyone feel confident the Trojans can go 4-1 over the final five to secure a spot in the Pac-12 title game? Because that’s what it will take, at a minimum.

Anything short of another title appearance will be a massive failure for this USC team. There will be no way for Riley to spin it, no excuse that will absolve it. The reigning Heisman Trophy winner and presumptive No. 1 NFL Draft pick plays quarterback. Young players are sitting and redshirting so more experienced players brought in via the transfer portal can plug the holes in the roster.

This was always going to be a championship or bust season.

The heat is firmly on for Riley.