USC’s first Big Ten road test of the season comes with a chance to settle in before the schedule turns brutal.
The No. 12 Trojans, fresh off a 49-30 win over Louisiana to finish a 3-0 nonconference run, travel to New Jersey on Saturday to open league play against Rutgers, a team still searching for its first win. It’s only the second meeting between the programs, and USC handled the first one last season, rolling to a 42-20 victory in its inaugural Big Ten campaign.
That opener matters for more than just the conference standings. After Rutgers, USC is staring down a six-game stretch that includes No.
21 Oregon, No. 14 Penn State, No.
6 Ohio State and No. 4 Indiana.
So yes, this is the kind of game a team wants to bank before the road gets much rougher.
Rutgers, meanwhile, comes in at 0-2 after losses to UMass Amherst and Boston College. The Scarlet Knights have also been loose with the football, throwing seven interceptions and losing a fumble through two games.
For USC, the blueprint starts on the ground.
The Trojans ran all over Louisiana last week, piling up seven touchdowns and topping 200 yards both rushing and passing. They’ve averaged 172.7 rushing yards per game, good for fifth in the Big Ten, and that run game has been led by redshirt sophomore King Miller.
Miller posted a season-best 128 yards on 18 carries against Louisiana and added a 12-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter. His 48 carries this season are tied for fifth in college football.
Redshirt senior Waymond Jordan chipped in 52 yards from scrimmage as USC finished with 214 rushing yards in the win. Miller said Tuesday that last week is already behind him.
“It’s a new game plan, new week, so a different scheme,” Miller said in a press conference Tuesday. “Just going back to the drawing board, back to practice, going to see what they do, their tendencies, so [we have] another week to get better.”
USC’s offense will have to move on without freshman wide receiver Trent Mosley, who will miss the Rutgers game after leaving Saturday’s win with an apparent knee injury. Head coach Lincoln Riley said Wednesday that the injury does not appear to be a long-term issue, though the timing remains unclear.
“[Mosley] won’t be available this week, and we’ll just continue monitoring forward,” Riley said in a post-practice news conference Wednesday. “We don’t expect it to be extremely long term, but still a little inconclusive on this time depending on how he responds.”
Mosley has been one of the early stars of USC’s 3-0 start, giving Jayden Maiava a dangerous target on the outside and adding value in the return game. Against Louisiana, he broke loose for an 86-yard punt return touchdown - the longest by a USC player since 2013 - and later caught a 21-yard touchdown to open the second half.
Even without him, USC has options. Freshman Kayden Dixon-Wyatt and redshirt sophomore Zacharyus Williams have both shown big-play ability, and junior NC State transfer Terrell Anderson has been reinstated after missing the first two weeks with injury.
Defensively, USC has quietly done plenty of damage too. The Trojans haven’t allowed an opponent to convert a fourth down this season, and freshman defensive end Luke Wafle has been a major part of that push. Against Louisiana, he led USC with seven total tackles and six solo stops.
Rutgers has given opposing pass rushers a lot to work with, having allowed eight sacks in two games. That sets up a chance for Wafle, junior defensive tackle Jide Abasiri and redshirt senior defensive end Zuriah Fisher to make noise in the backfield. Fisher recorded USC’s lone sack against Louisiana and forced a fumble as well.
Riley said the defense’s first job is to shut down the run and keep teams out of the end zone.
“Great red zone defense starts with stopping the run,” Riley said. “Once a great defense can eliminate that, then it allows you to focus in on some of the other areas. I think that’s always the first key, and that’ll be important for us as we start to get into Big Ten play, [just] making sure we are doing a great job against the run.”
USC and Rutgers kick off in Piscataway, New Jersey, on Saturday at 12:30 p.m.
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USC Escaped Rutgers But One Troubling Issue Still Lingers
USC survived a tense battle with Rutgers, pulling out a 42-35 win that was far less comfortable than the ranking suggested. The Trojans needed big days from redshirt sophomore Miller and redshirt-freshman Riley Wormley to keep the offense moving, with both players supplying key runs and touchdowns as Rutgers stayed within striking distance throughout the afternoon.
The result will count, but it also left a familiar concern hanging over the Trojans. USC leaned heavily on individual playmakers, and the offense still had stretches defined by penalties and uneven passing, the kind of issues that can make even a win feel like a warning sign. Rutgers kept forcing USC to answer, and the bigger question now is whether the Trojans can clean up the rough edges before a tougher spot in the schedule turns those flaws into something more costly. [Read more 🡒]
USC Stayed Unbeaten But One Problem Looms Before Oregon
Southern California escaped its Big Ten opener with a 42-35 win over Rutgers, a game that looked more comfortable on the scoreboard than it felt on the field. Jayden Maiava threw for 277 yards and two touchdowns, King Miller added 102 rushing yards and a score, and the Trojans did enough to stay unbeaten even as Rutgers Dylan Lonergan pushed back with 272 passing yards and three touchdowns.
The bigger concern now is what comes next. USC gets Oregon at home, and the Ducks will be a far different test than a Rutgers team that hurt itself with turnovers, including a 99-yard interception returned for a touchdown. The Trojans survived this one, but the margin for error gets a lot thinner from here. [Read more 🡒]
Rutgers Fans Wont Like How USC Kept That Drive Alive
USCs first road trip of the season had the kind of third-quarter sequence that tends to linger long after the final whistle. In the middle of a pivotal drive against Rutgers, an inadvertent whistle wiped out a completed third-down pass, forcing the down to be replayed and turning one clean conversion into a fresh round of pressure for the Trojans.
From there, the drive took a winding path, with USC failing on the replayed third down before going for it on fourth and eventually hitting a 32-yard completion to keep things moving. It was the sort of break-and-response sequence that can swing a road game, and the No. 12 Trojans made enough of those plays to leave New Jersey with a win and a 4-0 record. [Read more 🡒]