A first meeting, and a defensive line getting healthier
Southern California and Louisiana have never played each other. That changes on Saturday in Los Angeles, where the fourteenth-ranked Trojans host a Sun Belt side arriving 1-0 and yet to concede a point on defence this season.
The most concrete piece of news out of USC this week concerns Jahkeem Stewart. The tackle has been sidelined by a foot problem and is back in practice, which puts his 2026 debut in play. Lincoln Riley said on Tuesday evening that Stewart is participating and that there is a shot of him featuring against Louisiana. Stewart made 18 tackles and 1.5 sacks as a freshman in 2025 and also intercepted a pass.
Adding him to a pass rush that already generated two safeties last week is the sort of upgrade that reshapes a Saturday.
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The numbers USC bring into it
The Trojans are 2-0 and averaging 528.5 yards per game. Jayden Maiava has completed 48 of 54 passes, 88.9 per cent, for five touchdowns and no interceptions, at 317.5 passing yards per game. Last season he went almost a month before throwing his first pick.
The ground game is split between Waymond Jordan and King Miller, who have 49 carries and 223 yards between them with a touchdown each. Six receivers have seen between five and eleven targets. Freshman Trent Mosley leads the group with 11 catches for 222 yards and three scores.
The defensive marker is older and more striking. Fresno State’s 116 yards last Friday were the fewest USC have allowed since Notre Dame managed 91 in November 2008. Safety Kennedy Urlacher recorded two sacks in that game, one of them for a safety, and cornerback Alex Graham forced another.
Louisiana are not arriving empty-handed
The Ragin’ Cajuns beat Lamar 38-7 without their defence conceding a point. The FCS side’s only touchdown came on a fourth-quarter interception return, and Lamar finished with 56 rushing yards.
Michael Desormeaux liked the way the phases fed each other. Louisiana scored on four of their first six possessions, two of those drives starting inside Lamar territory, and the coach pointed out it took until midseason last year for his offence to start cashing in on defensive stops.
“It always starts with stopping the run,” Desormeaux said of the plan to keep USC one-dimensional.
Louisiana leaned on the run themselves, piling up 243 yards with four different players scoring. Quarterback Lunch Winfield ran for 84, matching Darrell Smith’s team high, and completed 16 of 22 throws for 189 yards with two interceptions.
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