Kirk Ferentz appeared to take a shot at USC and head coach Lincoln Riley ahead of their arrival in the Big Ten next season.

The Trojans struggled this season after many predicted them to be a threat to reach the CFP. USC finished the year 7-5.

Offensively, USC was still as good as advertised preseason. Caleb Williams didn’t quite have the Heisman season he did in 2022, but was still one of the better QBs in the nation. But Ferentz appeared to explain Saturday that offensive stats and performance indicators only mean so much if the wins don’t reflect it.

“If you want to evaluate a quarterback, check the wins per game column. I can think of a guy that entered the conference recently that came with widely acclaimed offensive stats and all that,” Ferentz said. “That’s usually how those guys become well-known, whatever they’re doing it, throwing it, running it, wishbone. Then you look a little deeper, say ‘what’s this guy’s wins per game?’ There’s usually a correlation. People that just throw the ball around, it makes it tougher to win and tougher to be good on defense.”

Ferentz went on to point out that there’s a school on the west coast that’s currently re-committing to defense through the transfer portal. He also seemed to laugh at the absurdity of USC needing to do that, being a team that’s been known for historical defensive figures such as Ronnie Lott, Troy Polamalu and Junior Seau, among many others.

Listen to Ferentz’ full comments below: