LOS ANGELES -- For the first time this season, the No.12-ranked USC will get on a plane and face an opponent on the road. The Trojans (3-0) open Big Ten play Saturday afternoon at Rutgers (0-2), a matchup set for 12:30 p.m. PT at SHI Stadium. It's the first conference test of the year for both programs, and their first meeting since USC's 42-20 victory over Rutgers at the Coliseum in October 2024.
On paper, the matchup appears to be lopsided. USC opened as a 24.5-point favorite, with Rutgers coming off a pair of losses to UMass and Boston College. The Scarlet Knights are currently ranked dead last among FBS teams in the turnover department, with eight already accumulated. But quarterback Jayden Maiava is wise enough to avoid treating victory as a formality.
"Really good front, great DBs in the back end, really good scheme," the redshirt senior said of Rutgers after Tuesday's practice. "Great opportunity for us to go out there and compete."
Maiava has given the Trojans no reason to worry through three games, throwing for 261 yards and a career-high five touchdowns in last week's 49-30 victory over Louisiana. He still looks to downplay any signs of a major leap, however. The emphasis remains on the fundamentals.
John Panganiban-The Sporting Tribune
USC quarterback Jayden Maiava (14) makes a pass during an NCAA Football game against the Louisiana Ragin Cajuns on September 12th, 2026 at The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California.
"No turnovers, mechanics, footwork, pocket presence, all the good stuff," Maiava said when asked about what's evolved in his game. "It just comes with reps, practice...definitely want to fall in love with the basics."
Head coach Lincoln Riley has framed the same idea differently for the whole team this week, emphasizing the need to raise the floor.
"It's not the great plays," he said. "A lot of times it's how, if we went and found your worst plays in the game, are they plays that kill us? The great players...even their bad plays aren't that bad."
One name that the Trojans won't have available is freshman receiver Trent Mosley, who has been the most dynamic wideout on the squad thus far. Riley confirmed Wednesday that Mosley is out against Rutgers after he was listed as such on the Big Ten availability report.
"We knew after the game that there was a little something we needed to get looked at," he said. "He won't be available this week...don't expect it to be extremely long-term, but still a little inconclusive on his time depending on how he responds."
His absence puts more emphasis on a pass-catching core that saw a new breakout performer emerge last week in tight end Mark Bowman, who caught two touchdowns against Louisiana.
"It's kind of expected," Maiava said of Bowman's development. "He's been practicing his butt off. He's been putting a lot of work in behind the scenes, and everybody's getting to see it now."
Coach Riley connected Bowman's emphatic hurdle moment against the Ragin' Cajuns, capping a gain on a play-action pass of 35 yards, to one of his broader offensive philosophies. He cited becoming increasingly determined to utilize play-action schemes to set up an effective run game and keep defenses guessing, dating back to his time with Texas Tech and East Carolina University.
"It starts with running the ball really good," Riley said. "The threat and the ability to run the ball is where the whole thing starts. The better run action team you are, the more conflict you're going to put defenses in."
That run game continues to lean on the primarily two-back rotation of King Miller and Waymond Jordan that Riley intends to keep intact as conference play begins.
"We got to balance it," he said, crediting the experience of his running backs and offensive line. "We're going to need them both. With the style that we play and the way we want to run the ball, it's important."
Miller is ready to embrace the added level of toughness that comes with entering conference play.
"It's just the physicality of what the Big Ten is," he said. "The guys up front is what lead us. They're doing a great job up front. It's [up to] me and the guys in this RB room to go out there and show that to the world."
Defensively, USC's focus will be on containing a pair of proven Rutgers playmakers in running back Antwan Raymond and receiver KJ Duff. Raymond has accumulated 1,874 rushing yards and 21 career touchdowns in three seasons with the Scarlet Knights, while Duff is the first receiver in program history to eclipse 120 receiving yards in three consecutive games.
"He's an athletic back," USC defensive tackle Jide Abasiri said of Raymond. "He can make guys miss a lot. We just got to be able to stuff the O-line and stuff the run."
This will be the longest road trip, distance-wise, for the Trojans in 2026. The program is departing Thursday, a first this season, a tweak built from lessons learned on last year's cross-country slate.
"We've made some adjustments to when we're going to be playing on the road, and we're going to be traveling this far," Riley said. "From year one to year two, I thought our travel plan was way better. Even with that, there's definitely a few changes that'll be different from last year that we feel like are going to help."
Whether or not that preparation shows up on the road will be an early indicator ahead of a Big Ten schedule that only gets tougher from here.