USC pummels Missouri State during season-opening win

Five years ago, when USC first scheduled this 2025 season opener, the plan had been to go big, to test itself with a marquee, nonconference opponent that not only bolstered the Trojans’ strength of schedule but also captured the attention of college football. So, at the time, USC agreed to a home-and-home meeting with Mississippi, when Lane Kiffin, the Trojans’ former coach, would make his much-anticipated return to the Coliseum.

That matchup, of course, never came to fruition. The entire landscape of college football was upended in the meantime. Lincoln Riley became the coach. USC left the Pac-12 for the Big Ten. And the meeting with Mississippi was canceled, the rationale from USC’s leaders being there was no sensible reason, in the age of the expanding College Football Playoff, to test your team with top-tier nonconference competition.

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It’s possible Lincoln Riley could turn a corner and make USC a College Football Playoff contender this season, but Saturday’s win also might just mask mediocrity.

Aug. 31, 2025

Which is how Missouri State, in its first-ever matchup as a Football Bowl Subdivision program, wound up at the Coliseum on Saturday, watching helplessly as USC stopped just short of stealing the Bears’ lunch money in a 73-13 season-opening beatdown.

It was the most points USC had scored in a football game since 1930, when it put up 74 points on California. But how much could USC really take from trouncing a team that finished fourth last season ... in the Missouri Valley Conference? Before that, Missouri State had just one winning season at the FCS level over their previous 14.

USC 73, Missouri State 13, end of fourth quarter

Missouri State started on its 19 after a kickoff return.

Reggie Branch II ran for nine yards. Branch carried the ball again for six yards. Cole Feuerbacher passed for one yard.

On second-and-nine, Branch ran for two yards and the two-minute timeout was triggered.

Feuerbacher passed for an eight-yard gain and a first down.

Iverson Young ran for two yards and then carried the ball for another two yards.

On third-and-six with 58 seconds left, Feuerbacher ran for two yards. Missouri State punted to the USC 6.

Kendarius Reddick ran for four yards and time expired to close out an absolutely dominant USC performance to open the season.

Check back soon for Ryan Kartje’s complete postgame coverage.

USC 73, Missouri State 13, 4:46 left in fourth quarter

USC started on its 48.

Bryan Jackson ran for a two-yard loss before running for a one-yard gain.

On third-and-11, Husan Longstreet ran for 11 yards and extended the drive. Missouri State was called for illegal use of the hands and gave up another 10 yards.

On first down at the Missouri State 32, Longstreet passed to Jackson for five yards. Longstreet passed to Zacharyus Williams for 15 yards.

On first down at the Missouri State 12, Jackson ran up the middle for three yards. Longstreet then passed to Carson Tabaracci for a nine-yard touchdown.

William Weisberg hit the extra point.

USC 66, Missouri State 13, 8:34 left in fourth quarter

Missouri State starts on its 25.

Cole Feuerbacher passed for 18 yards, but the Bears were called a penalty and loss five yards.

Facing first-and-15 at its 20-yard line, Missouri State called timeout. Feuerbacher then ran for two yards. Connor Lair ran for a four-yard loss and Missouri State was called for an illegal shift, but USC declined the penalty.

On third-and-17 at the Missouri State 18, Feuerbacher tossed a pass to Connor Lair for a loss of three yards. Feuerbacher was injured on the play.

Missouri State punted to the USC 48.

USC 66, Missouri State 13, 10:51 left in fourth quarter

Missouri State returned USC’s kickoff 16 yards to its 16.

Cole Feuerbacher passed to Ronnel Johnson, who fumbled the ball after a six-yard gain and it was recovered by USC at the Missouri State 22.

Husan Longstreet passed to DJ Jordan for a 23-yard touchdown, but the Trojans were called for holding.

Longsteet passed to Corey Simms for a six-yard gain. On second-and-11, Longstreet ran for five yards. King Miller ran for three yards.

Facing fourth-and-three at the Missouri State 15, Ryon Sayeri hit a 32-yard field goal.

USC 63, Missouri State 13, 13:30 left in fourth quarter

Missouri State started on its 25.

Shomari Lawrence ran for five yards and then another three yards. Jordan Clark passed for a one-yard gain and Lawrence gained three on fourth-and-one, extending the Bears’ drive.

Clark passed to Dash Luke for 18 yards, moving the ball to the USC 45. Lawrence ran for 12 yards to the USC 33. Clark tossed an incomplete pass.

Clark’s next pass was intercepted by Garrett Pomerantz and returned 37 yards. USC was called for sideline interference adn moved five yards back.

On first down at the Missouri State 39, USC was called for illegal formation and lost another five yards.

Husan Longstreet passed to Prince Strachan for 26 yards, moving the ball to the Missouri State 18 as time expired in the third quarter.

Longstreet opened the fourth quarter with a pass to Jay Fair for no gain. On second-and-10 at the Missouri State 18, Longstreet ran for a one-yard gain. On third-and-nine, Longstreet ran for a 17-yard touchdown. William Weisberg hit the extra point.

USC 56, Missouri State 13, 5:30 left in third quarter

USC started on its 25 after the touchback.

King Miller was handed the ball to open the drive and he ran for a 75-yard touchdown.

Ryon Sayeri hit the extra point.

USC 49, Missouri State 13, 5:42 left in third quarter

USC started on its 27.

Husan Longstreet was sacked for a loss of five yards and fumbled the ball. It was recovered by Missouri State at the USC 22.

The play stood after a review.

Shomari Lawrence ran for a three-yard loss. On second-and-13 at the USC 25, Jacob Clark passed for a four-yard gain. On third-and-nine at the USC 21, Clark was tackled for no gain.

Yousef Obeid hit a 46-yard field.

USC 49, Missouri State 10, 8:02 left in third quarter

Missouri State started on its 25.

Jacob Clark passed for six yards before he was sacked for a loss of nine yards. Clark’s next pass was incomplete and Missouri State punted to the USC 27.

USC 49, Missouri State 10, 10:26 left in third quarter

Eli Sanders returned Missouri State’s kickoff 19 yard to the USC 26.

Bryan Jackson ran for six yards.

Back-up quarterback Husan Longstreet passed Zacharyus Williams for four yards. Missouri State was called for unnecessary roughness and penalized 15 yards.

On first down at the Missouri 49, King Miller ran for a one-yard loss. Walker Lyons ran for three yards. On third-and-eight, Longstreet ran for eight yards and extended the drive.

Longstreet tossed an incomplete pass intended for Carson Tabaracci, but Missouri State was called for pass interference and USC gained 15 yards on the play.

Longstreet passed to Lyons for seven yards. Longstreet then ran for 12 yards. Longstreet closed the drive with a five-yard touchdown run.

Ryon Sayeri hit the extra point.

USC 42, Missouri State 10, end of second quarter

Missouri State got the ball at its 25 after the touchback.

Shomari Lawrence ran for a one-yard gain and time expired in the second quarter.

It was an absolutely dominant first half for the Trojans’ offense and they get the ball to open the third quarter.

We should see the more of USC’s roster in the second half with the Trojans in complete control at the Coliseum.

USC 42, Missouri State 10, 1:35 left in second quarter

Jayden Maiava passed to Makai Lemon for 13 yards. Eli Sanders ran for a one-yard loss. Maiava passed to Lemon for a 12-yard gain.

On first down at the USC 27 with 38 seconds left, Maiava tossed an incomplete pass. Maiava then completed a short pass to Sanders, who broke through the Missouri State defense for a 73-yard touchdown.

Ryon Sayeri hit the extra point as the Trojans’ offense kept cooking.

USC 35, Missouri State 10, 1:35 left in second quarter

Missouri State started on its 25 after a touchback.

Ramone Green Jr. ran for seven yards. Green then ran for 12 yards, moving quickly to the Missouri State 44. Green ran for three yards before the two-minute warning.

On second-and-seven at the Bears’ 47, Missouri State was called for a false start. Jacob Clark passed to Shomari Lawrence for a two-yard loss.

On third-and-14 at the Missouri State 40 with 1:54 remaining in the second quarter, USC called timeout. Clark then tossed an incomplete pass broken up by Bishop Fitzgerald.

Missouri State punted to the USC 3-yard line.

USC 35, Missouri State 10, 3:35 left in second quarter

Missouri State kicked the ball to the USC 5 and Makai Lemon returned it 19 yards to the USC 24.

Waymond Jordan ran for one yard. Jayden Maiava then passed to Lake McRee for eight yards. Jordan ran for seven yards to the USC 40.

Maiava rolled to his right and passed deep to Lemon for a 26-yard gain. Maiava then passed to Jordan for 16 yards, moving to the Missouri State 14.

Maiava passed to Ja’Kobi Lane for four yards. Maiava then passed to Tanook Hines for 11 yards. Maiava closed the drive by running for a three-yard touchdown.

Ryon Sayeri hit the extra point to extend USC’s lead.

USC 28, Missouri State 10, 7:58 left in second quarter

Missouri State started on its 35 after USC’s kickoff sailed out of bounds.

Shomari Lawrence ran no gain, getting tackled by Jadyn Walker. Jacob Clark was then dropped for a loss of no yards. On third-and-10, Clark passed to Ramone Green Jr. for 28 yards.

On the next play, Green ran for a three-yard loss, moving the ball to the USC 41. Clark passed to Luke Dash for 11 yards. On third-and-two at the USC 30, Clark was sacked by Braylan Shelby for a three-yard loss.

On fourth-and-five at the USC 33, Missouri State called timeout. Clark passed deep to Tristian Gardner for a 33-yard touchdown. The Bears hit the extra point and trimmed the Trojans’ lead.

USC 28, Missouri State 3, 12:00 left in second quarter

Missouri State started on its 25.

Shomari Lawrence ran for a two-yard loss. Jacob Clark passed for a six-yard gain. On third-and-six on the Bears’ 29, Clark tossed a pass that was intercepted by Bishop Fitzgerald and returned it for a 39-yard touchdown. USC was called for delay of game on the extra-point attempt, but the five extra yards were no problem for Ryon Sayeri and he converted the extra point.

USC 21, Missouri State 3, 13:21 left in second quarter

Jayden Maiava passed to Lake McRee short across the middle of the field. McRee caught it at the USC 44 and scampered to complete a 64-yard touchdown.

Ryon Sayeri hit the extra point and extended the Trojans’ dominant offensive run.

USC 14, Missouri State 3, 13:30 left in second quarter

On second-and-14 at the Missouri State 21, Jacob Clark passed for six yards. Clark’s next pass was for no gain, with Desman Stephens II stuffing the play for the Trojans.

Missouri State punted to the USC 36.

USC 14, Missouri State 3, end of first quarter

Missouri State started on its 35.

Jack Clark was sacked by Kameryn Fountain for a four-yard loss as time expired in the first quarter.

USC 14, Missouri State 3, 28 seconds left in the first quarter

USC started on its 25 after a holding call on the punt return.

Waymond Jordan ran for three yards. Jayden Maiava tossed an incomplete pass. Maiava then passed to Makai Lemon for 17 yards and the first down.

On first down at the USC 45, Eli Sanders ran for a nine-yard gain. Missouri State was called for an offside penalty. On first down at the Bears’ 41, Sanders ran for five yards. Maiava’s pass toward the end zone fell incomplete.

On third-and-five at the Missouri State 36, the Bears called their timeout of the game.

Maiava passed to Ja’Kobi Lane for 13 yards. Sanders ran for three yards and for another 17 yards to the Missouri State 3.

Bryan Jackson then ran for a three-yard touchdown. Ryon Sayeri hit the extra point.

USC 7, Missouri State 3, 5:18 left in the first quarter

Missouri State started on its 25 after the USC touchback.

Jacob Clark passed to Dash Luke for a four-yard loss, with Bishop Fitzgerald and Kamari Ramsey breaking up the play.

Shomari Lawrence ran for seven yards.

On third-and-seven, Clark tossed an incomplete pass.

Missouri State punted to the USC 35. The Trojans were called for holding on the play and pushed back 10 yards.

USC 7, Missouri State 3, 6:58 left in the first quarter

USC responded to Missouri State’s opening field goal with a swift touchdown drive.

Missouri State kicked off to the USC 1 and Makai Lemon returned it 24 yards to the 25.

Jayden Maiava passed to Lemon for a five-yard gain. Missouri State’s Gilles Tchio was injured during the play and the game was delayed as he was helped off the field.

Maiava faked a handoff and passed to Ja’Kobi Lane for a 16-yard gain. Maiava then passed to Lemon for a five-yard gain, moving the ball to the Missouri State 49. Maiava tossed a short pass to sweeping Lemon, who gained 12 yards.

Maiava kept the ball on the next play for a six-yard run.

Waymond Jordan ran for 26 yards and then carried the ball again for a five-yard touchdown.

USC capped the seven-play, 75-yard drive with an extra point from Ryon Sayeri and took the lead.

Missouri State 3, USC 0, 10:12 left in the first quarter

Missouri State started on its 25 following the opening kickoff.

Jacob Clark tossed an incomplete pass before his next throw went for 11 yards. Shomari Lawrence ran for a yard and Clark passed for a six-yard gain.

On third-and-three at the Missouri State 43, the Bears called for timeout. Lawrence then ran for a 23-yard gain out of the shotgun formation.

Lawrence ran for another two yards to the USC 34. Clark tossed an incomplete pass that was broken up by Christian Pierce, setting up third-and-eight on the USC 32.

Clark passed to Lawrence for five yards.

On fourth-and-three at the USC 17, Yousef Obeid hit a 44-yard field goal to give Missouri State an early 3-0 lead.

USC 0, Missouri State 0, start of first quarter

Missouri State won the opening coin flip and elected to receive.

USC’s opening kickoff was a touchback.

The metaphor feels almost too obvious, the iron-and-brick facade of a half-finished, $200-million football palace looming over Howard Jones Field. A chorus of construction equipment cuts through the chaos of a preseason football practice, the whole scene a reminder that USC, in Year 4 of the Lincoln Riley era, is building toward something.

Where USC’s football program stands in that building process is a bit more complicated to capture. After winning 11 games in Riley’s first season as USC’s coach, the Trojans’ win total has declined in each of the two seasons since. Riley, through 40 games at USC, now has one fewer win (26) than his predecessor, Clay Helton (27), did at the same point during their tenures.

A dozen years before he charted a bold, new path for the USC football program, Chad Bowden was living on the pull-out couch of a cramped studio apartment in Hollywood with no clue where his life was headed.

Bowden couldn’t have dreamed up the role he’d one day occupy a few miles down the street at USC, where as the Trojans football general manager, Bowden has infused the program with new energy while putting together the top recruiting class in America.

Following public uproar over the potential end of their 100-year old football rivalry, USC has made an amended offer to Notre Dame that would extend their annual series for multiple years beyond this season, USC athletic director Jennifer Cohen told The Times.

Negotiations remain ongoing between the two schools, but Cohen said she is “really hopeful” that USC’s new offer, which better accommodates Notre Dame’s preference for a long-term deal, would lead to an agreement “very soon.”

When he arrived as a walk-on center in the fall of 2022, Kilian O’Connor came in with every intention of fighting for a spot on USC’s offensive line.

For the O’Connor family, there was a certain pride in being a walk-on. His father and grandfather were walk-ons. It didn’t matter that he was buried on the depth chart, or that the odds were stacked against him. It was his duty to stay ready.

Rising star USC wideout Ja’Kobi Lane suffered a broken foot in May, but was fully cleared this week and will be ready for the Trojans’ season opener against Missouri State, coach Lincoln Riley said Thursday.

The foot injury kept Lane limited through most of the summer. By the start of preseason camp, he was still being brought along slowly. During the portion of USC’s practices open to reporters, Lane wasn’t even running routes on air.

After all the transfer portal trackers and the Lincoln Riley Finebaum rants and the landscape-altering, paradigm-shifting changes to the sport, it’s finally game week here at the Times of Troy.

We’re at the doorstep of a new USC football season, which means there’s no better time to subscribe to this newsletter and ensure you get the best USC analysis — not to mention TV recs, Big Ten betting picks, Midwest travel tips and more — delivered to your inbox every Monday morning.