Notes from the USC LAFB game preview — Saturday night at the Coliseum
USC Trojans Game Snapshot
No. 14 USC Trojans (2-0) host Louisiana (1-0) on Saturday at the Coliseum. Kickoff is 8 p.m. PT (11 p.m. ET) on Big Ten Network. First meeting ever. This is the last nonconference tune-up before Big Ten play starts at Rutgers next week.
USC is a heavy favorite — around 31.5 points. Over/under is sitting at 59.5 on FanDuel. Defense just posted a 39-0 shutout of Fresno State. Offense has only punted twice in two games and has yet to attempt a field goal.
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The late kick is a mental test. Players spend all day waiting. Tobias Raymond noted the difference vs. a noon game: you don’t even get to the Coliseum until 5–6 p.m. Stay locked in.
Key 1 — Get The Kicking Game Some Live Reps
Caden Chittenden is 11-for-11 on extra points and has zero field-goal attempts through two weeks.
He transferred from UNLV (26-of-33 FGs as a freshman), got hurt in 2025 camp, lost the job to Ryon Sayeri, stayed, and won the job back. Still hasn’t attempted a FG as a Trojan.
You don’t want drives to stall on purpose. But you also don’t want his first live attempt of the year to come with 3 seconds left against Oregon or Ohio State. A couple of attempts Saturday would be useful practice that practice itself can’t fully simulate.
Key 2 — Stop The Run (Then Let The Pass Rush Hunt)
Louisiana is a run-first team. Last week vs. Lamar, they rushed for 243 yards:
- QB Lunch Winfield: 8 carries, 84 yards, 1 TD (a lot of designed runs)
- RB Darrell Smith: 10 carries, 84 yards, 2 TDs (8.4 YPC)
- Anthony Reagan Jr.: 8 carries, 37 yards, 1 TD
Winfield was 16-of-22 for 189 yards, 0 TD, 2 INTs. The backup threw a pick-six. Three interceptions total.
Last week the USC Trojans bottled Fresno’s run and forced them into obvious passing downs. Same plan here: take away the run, then let the front (Wafle, Crawford, Ramos, interior guys like VanSumeren, Stewart, Abasiri, and others) get after the passer. Don’t let Winfield escape on third-and-long and flip the field. He’s a useful test for the athletic QBs coming later.
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Stopping the run is the Big Ten prerequisite. Michigan two years ago was the reminder of what happens when you don’t.
Key 3 — Establish The Run (Vision And Second-Level Blocking)
The USC Trojans offensive line is settled, and pass protection has been strong. Run blocking at the point of attack looks decent — holes appear on zone and stretch. The issues are second-level blocking and RB vision/hole selection.
- Waymond Jordan: over 6 YPC in both games, looks fluid, with burst and speed after injury.
- King Miller: less explosive this year; some wrong-hole / not-trusting-the-block moments. Last year’s one-cut crease runs haven’t shown up as much.
- Deshonne Redeaux (limited snaps so far, ~2 carries per game): explosive in the open field. On one short TD, he beat two defenders. Worth more vanilla looks (zone, counter, draw) so the package isn’t telegraphed.
Louisiana held Lamar to 56 rushing yards and runs a 3-4 base defense with smaller linemen. USC should win the point of attack on size. Tobias Raymond has pointed at second-level work as the next step. This is the week to get Miller and Jordan their best outputs of the year before conference play.
Last year’s one-dimensional offense against Oregon and Notre Dame is the thing to avoid repeating.
Key 4 — Linebacker Coverage + Take The Ball Away
The USC Trojans forced two turnovers last week (INT by Prophet Brown, fumble recovery by Floyd Boucard). Louisiana threw three picks last week. Be opportunistic.
Linebacker split:
- Deven Bryant — excellent run-fit guy (“GPS” hole selection). Drop-off in coverage because of size and natural traits. Some slants/digs converted on him last week.
- Jadyn Walker — upgrade in coverage (not elite, but better). Forced an incompletion in a spot Bryant had given up.
- Desmond Stephens — third-down LB, improving, staying on the field just about every snap.
Rotate by situation: Bryant on third-and-short / run downs; Walker/Stephens on third-and-long and passing downs. Keep a spy on Winfield so he doesn’t scramble into first downs.
Force more takeaways. The secondary should feast if the run is stopped and Winfield is forced to throw.
Battle Cry
This is a game USC should handle. The point isn’t just winning — it’s cleaning up the last few things before Rutgers, Oregon, and the rest of the Big Ten slate.
Watch for: a field-goal attempt or two, a physical run-stop, more consistent crease hitting from the backs, and linebackers that don’t give up easy conversions.
Drop your score prediction. Fight On.