USC gets another chance to sharpen its edges Friday night, and this one should tell us a lot about how far the Trojans have come since opening week.
The No. 14 Trojans host Fresno State at 6 p.m. at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, with USC listed as a 23.5-point favorite. The game will be shown on FOX and heard on 710 AM.
USC is coming off a season-opening win over San José State, but the bigger question now is whether it can put together four clean quarters without the usual early-season slippage in execution. That matters even more for a team with College Football Playoff ambitions, especially with a few regulars on the injury list. It also comes with a side plot: the Trojans need a lively crowd after the chatter that followed Saturday’s hot home game.
The injury report gives USC some uncertainty. Center Kilian O’Connor is out with a knee injury.
Defensive tackle Jahkeem Stewart, safety Marquis Gallegos, safety Kendarius Reddick, wide receiver Tanook Hines and defensive end Braylan Shelby are all questionable, each listed with undisclosed issues. Fresno State will be without guard Edward Fonua, who is dealing with a lower-leg injury.
On paper, this is still a talent mismatch, much like USC’s opener. Fresno State enters its second season under Matt Entz, who was USC’s assistant head coach for defense and linebackers coach in 2024.
The Bulldogs figure to lean on the ground game, with Bryson Donelson and Rayshon “Speedy” Luke forming their main one-two punch. Junior quarterback Jayden Mandal is set for the second start of his career after missing all of last season because of injury.
For USC, the formula should look familiar. Jayden Maiava will guide an offense that plans to spread the work around, using its running backs in a measured way while trying to keep the game under control.
The key matchup is in the trenches, where USC’s defensive line will be tested by Fresno State’s run game. The Trojans’ starting front looks imposing, but the second- and third-string linemen who rotated in last week did not play at the same level. How they hold up against the Bulldogs could be an early indicator for what the rest of the season might look like.
And with plenty of freshmen expected to see the field again, USC has a chance to show real growth in a short span. The first-game nerves are gone now, and if the Trojans make the right adjustments, the young players should look sharper too. USC is heavily favored, so anything beyond the expected win would be a bonus.
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The 90.7 grade attached to Mosley stands out not just because it was the highest mark on the offense, but because it came in a game where USC had enough production to spread the spotlight around. For a young Trojan, that kind of opening-night attention is often the first sign of a role expanding, and it gives the coaching staff something useful to sort through as the season starts to take shape. [Read more 🡒]