The bigger question in Los Angeles isn't the Week 1 score, it's what USC looks like on defense. Riley's teams have historically leaked points no matter how loaded the offense is, and the program brought in former TCU head coach Gary Patterson specifically to fix that. San Jose State's own line of attack isn't nothing, either. The Spartans lost their leading receiver and leading tackler this offseason, but Arizona transfer Malachi Riley and a retooled receiver room give Weaver options to throw the ball around, even if the run game and pass rush were both problems a year ago.
None of that changes the shape of this game. USC enters the year with the nation's No. 1 recruiting class and its sights set on a College Football Playoff bid that's slipped away 4 years running. San Jose State is coming off a 3-win season, its worst mark since 2018, and head coach Ken Niumatalolo lost most of the roster that got them there.
Waymond Jordan and King Miller give USC one of the deeper backfields in the Big Ten, averaging a combined 6.3 yards per carry a season ago, and that ground game should feast on a Spartans defense that struggled to get off blocks and off the field in 2025. San Jose State's path here isn't to slow USC down completely, it's to make enough plays through the air with Weaver and Riley to keep the scoreboard from getting embarrassing.
This is exactly the kind of spot USC needs in a Big Ten schedule that later throws Oregon, Penn State, and Ohio State at Riley's group. A clean, low-drama opener lets the Trojans get freshmen and new pieces on defense some reps before the stakes ramp up. For San Jose State, it's the first data point in a season where just getting back above .500 would count as progress.