USC Trojans coach Lincoln Riley turned to redshirt sophomore quarterback Jayden Maiava late in the season following the team’s 26-21 loss to Washington in early November that dropped them to 4-5. Maiava took over needing to win two of the final three games for the Trojans to become bowl eligible. 

The UNLV transfer delivered, and he showed many bright moments but also had plenty of head scratching moments. Maiava landed at No. 22 in On3’s Impact Top 25 Quarterback Rankings, two spots ahead of former USC and current Louisville quarterback Miller Moss. He is ranked as the No. 3 quarterback in the Big Ten behind Penn State’s Drew Allar at No. 2 and Illinois’ Luke Altmyer at No. 21. 

Maiva earned his first start of the season in week 12 at home against Nebraska. He overcame an early pick-six from former USC cornerback Ceyair Wright, by throwing for 259 yards and accounting for all four touchdowns in a 28-20 victory.

The following week against their crosstown rivals, UCLA, Maiava had his fair share of struggles, particularly in the red zone. Three drives inside the 5-yard line resulted in three field goals in the first half. The Trojans’ inability to score touchdowns down by the goal line kept the Bruins in the game. UCLA eventually took the lead in the 3rd quarter and held onto it for a good part of the second half. 

However, halfway through the fourth quarter, the Trojans regained the lead thanks to a Caleb Williams-esque play from Maiava, where he reversed field, slipped a tackle and found receiver Ja’Kobi Lane in the back corner of the end zone for the touchdown. The Trojans never relinquished the lead and they walked away with a 19-13 win to bring the Victory Bell back to USC.

In the regular season finale against Notre Dame, Maiava’s 360 passing yards were the most by any quarterback against the Irish this past season. He also threw three touchdowns, but it was his two pick-sixes with under four minutes remaining in regulation that proved to be the deciding factor, and the Trojans fell 49-35. 

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Riley expressed his confidence in Maiava when he met with the media on the first day of the early national signing period in early December. 

“I have a lot of confidence in Jayden, he played well led us to two big victories and I thought really put us in great position, that was statistically the No. 1 passing defense the other day he did a pretty good job against,” Riley said. “I think he’s gonna continue to progress and get better and better and we obviously have a ton of confidence in he and Husan (Longstreet) and what that room has a chance to become.”

USC headed into the Las Vegas Bowl against Texas A&M without big portion of the players they had in the regular season, especially on offense. Running back Woody Marks opted out of the game after declaring for the NFL Draft and second-leading rusher Quinten Joyner enter the transfer portal.

Three of the Trojans top six receivers entered the portal, Duce Robinson, Zachariah Branch and Kyron Hudson. Starting center Jonah Monheim opted out after declaring for the draft, starting right tackle Mason Murphy entered the portal and starting left tackle Elijah Paige went down on the second drive of the game. 

Maiava looked out of sync, throwing three interceptions. USC struggled to find their rhythm offensively and fell behind 24-7 late in the third quarter. However, the Trojans rallied behind Maiava and were able to take a 28-24 lead with just under five minutes remaining in regulation, before Texas A&M quarterback Marcel Reed’s 19-yard touchdown run put the Aggies back on top with under two minutes left. 

In an eerily similar situation to their season opener against LSU, the Trojans had the ball and an opportunity to win the game at the end of regulation. Maiava drove them down the field and connected with receiver Kyle Ford for a seven-yard touchdown with eight seconds left, the same amount of time as their game-winner against LSU, to win 35-31. He finished the night with 295 passing yards and four touchdowns. 

Once again, Riley reiterated his confidence in Maiava for next season following the win. 

“I’m very confident, I think just going through what he’s been through, watching how fast he’s improved, I think most importantly to me, your performance as a player but it’s also who you are as person, the leader,” Riley said. “You know when you play that position that’s just part of it. The guys so selfless, so about the team. I think he’s just going to continue to get better and better.”

Maiava will certainly be challenged by incoming five-star quarterback Husan Longstreet in spring practice and fall camp, but right now, the Hawai’i native will be the Trojans signal-caller next season.