USC’s 2024 season was circling the drain with Miller Moss and Caleb Williams long gone, and the Coliseum crowd on edge. Then Jayden Maiava jogged onto the field like he owned the joint. He started slinging darts, throwing picks, juking defenders, taking sacks, and—most importantly—breathing life into a team that had been DOA in the Big Ten. Basically, Yin and Yang. Four games later, Trojan fans were asking, “Is this our guy?” Well, Lincoln Riley says yes… but with a little bit of a twist.

When Riley landed in L.A. back in late 2021, Cali folks swore he’d be hoisting two natties before his first decade was up. The man rolled in from Oklahoma with a 55–10 record, a Heisman QB, and a $110 million deal that could feed a small nation. Year 1? 11–3. Year 2? 8–5. And year 3, aka Big Ten debut? 7–6. For a coach built up as the West Coast savior, that’s the football equivalent of showing up to prom in sweatpants.

USC’s 2024 season was a masterclass in heartbreak. They blew fourth-quarter leads in five of their six losses. The defense finally got its act together under D’Anton Lynn—dropping points allowed from 34 per game in 2023 to 24.1 in 2024—but still couldn’t slam the door late. Then came the QB switch. Out went Miller Moss. In came Maiava. Suddenly, the Trojans went 3–1 to close the year, only losing to a Notre Dame team that made it to the natty.

Lincoln Riley couldn’t stop blushing when CBS Sports asked about his QB1: “I was really impressed with how he played in the last four games last year. We played four quality defenses. He made big-time plays in all of them. I mean, we won three. Gave us a chance really to win all of them with the way he played. And really just showed some guts and moxie. I mean, we played well in clutch situations. We played good after adversity hit. He did some things that are really difficult even for a veteran to do.” The player went off for 1,135 yards, 11 passing TDs, 5 picks, and 3 rushing scores in that stretch, including a 360-yard, 5-TD masterpiece against Notre Dame and a walk-off 75-yard drive in the Las Vegas Bowl to beat Texas A&M.

But here’s where Riley pumps the brakes. He wants Maiava to step back this offseason—not in production, but in mechanics and decision-making: “Now taking a step back throughout the offseason, it’s been continuing to find your voice as a leader for Jayden because he has that inside of him and he’s started to open up more with the team, which has been great. And then it’s taking some of those mistakes that you referenced and making it where, hey, my bad plays are incompletions, my bad plays are throwaways, or even sometimes maybe if I take a sack because, listen, we got enough good players around you.”

Translation: stop playing hero ball. If the play’s busted, chuck it away or eat the sack. No more YOLO deep shots into triple coverage. The coach is betting that if Maiava can trade a few fireworks for a little more maturity, USC could flip those close losses into big wins in 2025.

Maiava’s challenge now isn’t just on the field—it’s in the locker room. Riley says the kid’s finding his voice as a leader, opening up with teammates, and learning that sometimes the best play is the one you don’t make. If the maturity jump happens, look out. USC might just have its next Heisman campaign brewing, and Riley might just keep his office in Heritage Hall a little longer.

Defensively, there’s still some duct tape on the dam. They held Nebraska, UCLA, and A&M in check, but got lit up by the Irish. Still, the combination of a maturing QB, a sharper D, and an offense with some real weapons has the Trojans walking into 2025 feeling dangerous. The only question: Will Maiava’s next gear come in time for Riley’s seat to cool off?

Lincoln Riley on the WR room

If Jayden Maiava’s going to ball, he’s going to need wideouts who can catch the rock. In 2024, Makai Lemon was that WR1—52 grabs, 764 yards, and 14.7 yards per catch. Right behind him, Ja’Kobi Lane turned into USC’s red-zone boogeyman, snagging 12 TDs on 43 catches. Zachariah Branch added 503 yards, and Duce Robinson made the most of limited work with 5 scores. But Branch and Robinson dipped, leaving Lemon and Lane as the unquestioned 1–2 punch for 2025.

Lemon’s already rocking All–Big Ten honors, and Lane’s still flexing his Las Vegas Bowl MVP. Behind them, Riley hit the portal hard—grabbing Utah transfer Zacharyus Williams and Boise State’s Prince Strachan, plus a batch of twitchy freshmen hungry for snaps. But make no mistake: this is Lemon and Lane’s show. Riley’s just figuring out who’s gonna be the hype man and who’s gonna be the roadie.

The punt return gig? That’s where it gets spicy. Riley flat-out refuses to pull Lemon from that role, even with Williams as a solid Plan B. “Punt return is one of the most important things on the field,” Riley said. And he’s right—it’s not just about breaking one to the house, it’s about knowing when not to touch the ball. Over the summer, both Lemon and Williams got plenty of reps, practicing everything from fair catches to letting the ball roll. The verdict: both can run it, but the job belongs to whoever makes the smartest split-second call.

Managing Lemon’s workload will be tricky. He’s the top target, a key return man, and the heartbeat of the offense. But with Williams pushing and Lane feasting in the red zone, Riley’s got the weapons to give Lemon a breather when needed. The bigger question? How fast this WR room gels with Maiava’s gunslinger mentality. If they sync early, USC’s offense could be one of the nastiest in the Big Ten by midseason.