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#pounditMonday, January 6, 2025

USC making major change for game against Nebraska

Lincoln Riley with a headset on

Apr 23, 2022; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Southern California Trojans coach Lincoln Riley during the spring game at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

USC has lost four of their last five games following a strong start to the season, and head coach Lincoln Riley has decided to make a major change.

The Trojans have benched starting quarterback Miller Moss in favor of UNLV transfer Jayden Maiava, ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported on Tuesday. USC is on a bye this week before hosting Nebraska on Nov. 16, and Maiava will get the start in that game.

Moss has decent numbers this season with 2,555 passing yards, 18 touchdowns and 9 interceptions across nine games. The results, however, have not been good for USC since their impressive early-season wins over LSU, Utah State and Wisconsin.

USC has blown multiple second-half leads in games they should have won. They are 2-5 in conference play, which is not what they envisioned for their first season in the Big Ten. Moss had a strong message for his doubters after a game last month, but the Trojans have continued to fall short of expectations.

Maiava, a redshirt sophomore, had 3,085 passing yards, 17 touchdowns and 10 interceptions at UNLV last season. He surprised many people when he flipped his commitment to USC from another top program, especially since Moss was already locked in as USC’s starter. Maiava will now get an opportunity to prove himself sooner than many expected.

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