USC’s path through the Big Ten is lined with enough land mines to make every week feel like a referendum on Lincoln Riley’s team.
That’s the big takeaway from Ari Wasserman of On3, who ranked the Trojans’ slate as the fifth-toughest in the conference. And if USC is going to stay in the College Football Playoff conversation, the margin for error looks thin. A 10-2 finish is probably the number the Trojans need to feel good heading into the final CFP rankings.
The schedule does give USC some breathing room early. San Jose State, Fresno State and Louisiana make up the non-conference portion, and those are games the Trojans should be able to handle. But once conference play starts, the calendar gets much less forgiving.
USC opens Big Ten play on the road at Rutgers, a game that should offer a chance to bank a solid win before the stretch that really shapes the season. Right after that comes the kind of run that can make or break a year: Oregon, Washington and Penn State.
The Oregon game jumps out immediately because it’s in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, and that matters. USC lost to the Ducks 42-27 last season in a game packed with mistakes, but this version of the Trojans brings a different look.
Quarterback Jayden Maiava has had another offseason to develop, Gary Patterson is in to call the defense, and USC has added players through the transfer portal and high school recruiting. That’s enough to make this a real measuring-stick game, and possibly a turning point if the Trojans can knock off Oregon.
Washington comes next at home, and while USC should be favored there, it won’t be a casual afternoon. Jedd Fisch has the Huskies playing disciplined football, so the Trojans will need the whole operation working - Maiava and Riley on offense, Patterson’s defense holding up its end, and no wasted possessions.
Then comes Penn State, which is another major checkpoint before USC heads into a brutal midseason grind. That stretch includes a road trip to Wisconsin, a home game against Ohio State and a visit to Indiana.
The Wisconsin game is the kind of road test USC has to survive. The Badgers are tough to deal with at home, and the Trojans will need their offensive line to set the tone and control the line of scrimmage if they want to leave with confidence.
Ohio State is the headline matchup in that section of the schedule. It’s a chance for USC to find out exactly where it stands in the Big Ten race.
Maiava’s play will matter in a big way there. If he can keep up with - or even outplay - Julian Sayin, USC could walk away with a huge win.
The Buckeyes game is followed by a bye, and then the Trojans head to Indiana to face the national champions from the 2025 season. It’s a late-season matchup with plenty hanging over it, and USC will already have been tested plenty on the road by then. If the Trojans can hold up on both lines, Maiava could be in position to deliver a resume-boosting win for the playoff chase.
After that, USC still has two conference games left: Maryland at home and UCLA on the road.
Maryland has trap-game written all over it after the Indiana trip, which means Riley will need his team locked in so nothing slips away late in the year. Then comes the regular-season finale at the Rose Bowl against UCLA, a rivalry game USC will absolutely circle. The Bruins are now led by Bob Chesney, who appears to be turning things around, but that doesn’t change the expectation for Riley and the Trojans to finish the job.
Taken as a whole, USC’s schedule has enough manageable spots to build momentum, but the heavy lifting is obvious. If the Trojans can survive the toughest stretches and win the games that matter most, they’ll give themselves a real shot at the Big Ten and the College Football Playoff.
In Other News...
Lincoln Riley Made One USC Staff Decision Fans Should Love
USCs defensive overhaul under Lincoln Riley came with the kind of staff reshuffling that usually sends fans scanning for both stability and upside, and this one delivered a little of each. The Trojans brought in former TCU head coach Gary Patterson as defensive coordinator and added assistants Paul Gonzales and Sam Carter, while also hiring Mike Ekeler to coach linebackers and oversee special teams. In the middle of that turnover, Riley also elevated Chad Savage from inside receivers and tight ends coach to pass game coordinator, a move that reflects how much USC values the work he has done on the trail and in developing players.
Savages rise fits the larger theme of the offseason: USC is trying to strengthen the defense without losing the staff members who have helped build relationships and keep the roster moving forward. Trovon Reed, the cornerbacks coach, was also retained, a sign the Trojans did not want to lose the recruiting momentum and player trust he has built. With Patterson setting the tone on one side of the ball and familiar lieutenants staying in place around him, Riley is trying to strike the balance between a fresh start and continuity, and that is exactly the kind of staff construction fans usually want to see. [Read more 🡒]
USC Faces Another Massive Receiver Battle Fans Know Too Well
USC is back in familiar territory with four-star wide receiver Dennis Tuaone, another highly regarded pass catcher weighing the Trojans against Miami in a recruitment that has plenty of moving parts. The hometown Hurricanes have been a major presence from the start, but USC has stayed in the mix after offering him in March and bringing him in for his first unofficial visit in June, giving the Trojans a real chance to sell their own pitch.
For Tuaone, this decision is shaping up around the kind of things elite receivers tend to remember: coaching relationships, the feel of a program, and how each staff fits him long term. Miami has been making a strong case with its ties close to home, while USC is trying to stand its ground in a battle that has already seen the Hurricanes track another former Trojans target. [Read more 🡒]
USC Has A New Penn State Threat To Worry About
Penn State enters the season with a passing game in transition after losing its top five leading receivers from last year, and that leaves a wide-open path for someone to seize a bigger role. One of the names USC has to keep on its radar is Amarion Jackson, a former safety who ended up at receiver because of injuries and now looks like a real option for an offense that needs answers.
Jacksons path is a little different from the usual freshman arrival, since he followed coach Campbell from Iowa State to Penn State after flipping his pledge. He has also turned heads in spring work, which only adds to the sense that he could be one of the more important new pieces in Penn States offense when the matchup with USC eventually comes into focus. [Read more 🡒]