USC had to like the way Week 7 played out.
The Trojans spent the weekend watching the Big Ten sort itself out, and a few results broke in a way that made the conference look wide open. Indiana no longer looks like the same team from a year ago, Ohio State’s grip on the top spot took a hit after the Julian Sayin injury, and the league suddenly feels a lot less settled than it did heading into the week.
One of the biggest results came Friday night, when Washington knocked off Purdue 38-26. The Huskies’ offense showed plenty of life, with Elijah Brown playing more aggressively than Demond Williams had been, even if the turnovers were a problem.
Brown wasn’t sharp enough to call it clean, but the shots were there, and Washington’s run game was firmly in control. It was the kind of performance that matters - just maybe a couple of weeks later than it needed to.
Saturday opened with Northwestern’s 24-21 win over Michigan State. It wasn’t pretty, but the Wildcats still found a way. That was the point: they handled a messy game and avoided the kind of trap that can derail a run.
Ohio State’s 19-15 win over Indiana carried a very different feel. Jeremiah Smith was kept quiet for most of the day before finally hooking up with Julian Sayin on the game-winning play in the fourth quarter.
Sayin then left with a serious injury, and the Buckeyes were left to cling to the lead late. Indiana nearly stole it at the end, too, with Nick Marsh just out of bounds on what could have been a touchdown.
The takeaway was hard to miss: Indiana looks gettable, and Ohio State looks vulnerable at exactly the wrong time.
Rutgers got the better of Maryland, 37-30, in a matchup of the Big Ten’s bottom end. KJ Duff delivered a dominant outing and reminded everybody he’s one of the best receivers in college football.
Rutgers had the better talent, and that was enough to push it past a struggling Terrapins group. The panic window for Maryland had already opened weeks ago.
Michigan’s 21-18 win over Penn State came with another quarterback change under center. Rocco Becht’s turnover issues remained a factor, while Tommy Carr gave Michigan a different feel and a different result. Carr now looks like the player who can change the Wolverines’ outlook entirely.
UCLA handled Wisconsin 17-7 and controlled the game from start to finish. Ty Dieffenbach, making his first start, held up well, and the Bruins’ run game gave him the support he needed. UCLA has shown it can adjust and win in different ways, and this was another clean example of that.
Then came the nightcap: Oregon 17-14 over Nebraska. If you stayed up, you got one of the more dramatic finishes of the weekend.
Dylan Raiola sat for three quarters before coming off the bench and getting the last laugh against his former team. He delivered another huge moment in Oregon’s season, stayed composed, and showed the kind of experience that can swing a game.
It was also another reminder that a strong backup quarterback can save a season. Oregon walked away with the win, and Nebraska let another one slip away.
In Other News...
USC Just Sent A Clear Message About Lincoln Rileys Future
With USC heading into a pivotal stretch against Wisconsin and other ranked opponents looming on the schedule, the message from the universitys top office was less about contracts and more about the scoreboard. President Beong-Soo Kim made it clear the Trojans are focused on what happens on the field right now, stressing that the program needs to block out outside chatter and keep its attention on winning.
The timing matters because USCs season still has plenty of room to swing in either direction, and every game from here carries weight in the national picture. Even with buyout talk and long-term questions around Lincoln Riley never far from the conversation, the immediate priority inside the building is to let the results answer everything else. [Read more 🡒]
USCs Bye Week Could Still Bring A Rankings Boost
USCs week off arrives at a good time, even if the Trojans are not taking the field in Week 7. Fresh off a win over Penn State, they sit at No. 19 and can spend the bye watching the sort of scoreboard chaos that often shapes the rankings as much as anything that happens on the field. Around them, there are plenty of teams with tricky matchups, injury questions and a chance to stumble, which gives USC a real opening to move up without having to do anything itself.
The ripple effects could come from several directions, with Texas, Florida, UCLA, Wisconsin, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi State, Ole Miss and Missouri all part of the broader picture. Quarterback injuries and uneven performances elsewhere could tighten the race above the Trojans, and that is what makes this week worth watching in Los Angeles. USC cannot control the polls, but it can benefit from the kind of results that tend to reshape the top 25 in a hurry. [Read more 🡒]
USCs Playoff Push Now Rests On One Jayden Maiava Question
Jayden Maiava looked every bit like the steady hand USC needed in one of the loudest settings in the country, completing 21 of 33 passes for 301 yards and three touchdowns at Penn State. Lincoln Riley called it one of the quarterbacks best games, a performance that showed poise, calm and leadership when the Trojans needed it most.
For USC, the bigger question is whether that version of Maiava can show up again and again as the season tightens. His play has swung too much at times this year, but the Trojans playoff push now depends on his ability to keep building on nights like this one, with more than wins and losses on the line as the draft conversation starts to sharpen, too. [Read more 🡒]