No. 18 USC heads into Saturday’s Big Ten matchup at No. 9 Indiana in Bloomington with a clean enough injury picture that nothing new appears ready to derail the Trojans.
That’s a sharp change of pace for USC, which has been in far better shape physically during Big Ten play than it has in past seasons. The latest report doesn’t bring any major surprises, though it does include one fresh setback.
Safety Trestin Castro is the newest name on the list after suffering a significant lower body injury in the first quarter of the Oct. 31 win over Ohio State. He was later seen on crutches with a brace on his leg as fans rushed the Coliseum.
Castro had already been forced into action earlier this season against Rutgers in Week 3 because of injuries at safety, but beyond that he had mostly worked as a special teams contributor.
There’s also some good news for USC on the offensive side. Freshman guard Kannon Smith made his first career start against the Buckeyes after Hayden Treter went down with a season-ending injury against Wisconsin in Week 8, and Smith appears set to stay in that role.
Tight end Mark Bowman is off the injury report entirely. The freshman was a game-time call against Ohio State after missing the previous three games with a hamstring injury.
He still played on a snap count, but USC clearly felt the difference with the former five-star recruit back on the field. After the second bye, Bowman had extra time to recover and should be free of restrictions Saturday.
Another positive for the Trojans: sophomore defensive lineman Jahkeem Stewart is no longer listed either. Stewart had re-injured the same foot that had him on a snap count throughout the 2025 season during fall camp, which kept him out of the first four games this year.
Indiana’s picture is more complicated. Coach Curt Cignetti has not revealed his starting quarterback for Saturday, but Josh Hoover is officially off the injury report after missing the second half of the Hoosiers’ Oct. 31 win over Minnesota with an injured throwing arm suffered against Ohio State. If Cignetti decides not to go with Hoover, Grant Wilson would be the next option.
The Hoosiers will definitely be missing a pair of important starters. Guard Joe Brunner, who had started every game this season after transferring from Wisconsin in the offseason, was injured in practice on Tuesday and will sit out against USC.
Leading rusher Turbo Richard is also out. Richard and Lee Beebe Jr. had formed Indiana’s top backfield tandem, but Beebe will now carry the load.
Freshman Jayreon Campbell and sophomore Sean Cuono have combined for just 20 carries.
Indiana will also be without key reserve defensive end Kellan Wyatt. Cornerback AJ Harris, who was listed as questionable on the first injury report, has since been upgraded to probable.
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