USC faces another mystery at quarterback heading into showdown with Indiana
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- No. 18 USC has spent much of the season preparing for uncertain quarterback situations, and No. 9 Indiana is forcing Lincoln Riley to prep for multiple QBs.
- The defending national champions still have formidable weapons, including NFL-bound receiver Charlie Becker, giving the Trojans a major road test in Bloomington.
- The stakes are enormous: A loss could end USC’s playoff hopes, while a win would put the Trojans firmly in the conversation.
Lincoln Riley can’t tell you for sure who will be at quarterback for Indiana when USC meets the defending national champion on Saturday. And Indiana coach Curt Cignetti has kept things pretty close to the vest, not indicating whether it’ll be Josh Hoover, the usual starter, or Grant Wilson, the seventh-year backup.
“We could spend our time speculating back and forth who it’s going to be,” Riley said this week. “I doubt we’re going to see some radically different offense based on who the quarterback is.”
His calm comes from the fact that under-center uncertainty is nothing new for No. 18 USC. Riley has spent pretty much the entire season preparing for opponents racked by quarterback questions.
The College Football Playoff will expand to 24 teams next year, ending a three-decade era of conference title games
It wasn’t clear in Week 1 who would be under center for Fresno State. Nor was it obvious two weeks later whether Rutgers was sticking with its starting quarterback.
Oregon got only three drives out of its top passer, Dante Moore, against USC before his injury thrust No. 2 Dylan Raiola into action. And a month after that, an injury to Ohio State star Julian Sayin left USC to face his backup, Luke Fahey, whom the Trojans terrorized.
Whether Hoover, who came to Indiana as a top transfer, will be healthy enough coming out of Indiana’s bye is still up in the air. Banged up for most of the last month, Hoover was replaced by Wilson in the Hoosiers’ last game, and Wilson proceeded to bring Indiana back from the brink in an overtime win over Minnesota.
Hoover wasn’t listed with any injury designation on the Big Ten’s availability reports this week. But over his past four games, he has completed only 48% of his passes; clearly, he was affected by injury.
“We’ll see how the week plays out and we’ll see who we trot out there,” Cignetti said Monday.
Whoever plays quarterback for No. 9 Indiana will have an array of weapons at their disposal, including star wideout Charlie Becker, who’s tracking to be a top-15 pick in the 2027 NFL draft. Though, that part should be nothing new, either, given USC’s recent work against Ohio State and the presumptive No. 1 pick, Jeremiah Smith.
“Real physical guy, has some great speed, a really experienced receiver,” USC cornerback Chasen Johnson said of Becker. “That’s going to be a great matchup.”
How well Indiana is able to move the ball could decide not just the Big Ten race but both teams’ College Football Playoff fates. With a loss in Bloomington, USC (7-2) would be knocked out of contention, reigniting questions about Riley’s future. With a win, USC would be propelled into the playoff conversation.
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That seemingly would leave only No. 4 UCLA — and another backup quarterback, Ty Dieffenbach — standing in the Trojans’ way.
Meanwhile, USC’s Jayden Maiava remains the most consistent — and healthy — passer in the Big Ten. Even if he hasn’t seemed all that consistent — or healthy — by his standards.
“He’s in a great place mentally,” Riley said. “He’s in a great place physically right now. He’s had some bumps and bruises along the year, but right now he’s as healthy as he’s been in terms of his body feeling good. He’s ready to roll, and I think he’s gearing up to play extremely well in this last stretch.”
In spite of it their up-and-down season, the Trojans are still alive in their pursuit of a College Football Playoff bid.
