Worst outcome for USC? How about win one, lose one versus UCLA & IU

If they have three losses, they are on the fringe of the CFP, and given the pro-SEC bias, probably on the outside looking in. Plus, though the season falls short of expectations, it's probably not bad enough to fire Riley and eat his buyout. So they would underperform and miss the playoffs, but not be so terrible that they'd have to fire the coach. And if they do fire him at 9-3, top-flight coaches are not likely to want to take on the dysfunction.

Am I right?