Jayden Maiava is unimpressed by No. 25 USC's prolific offense heading into Michigan State's big test

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LOS ANGELES (AP) — Although Jayden Maiava has been one of the nation's most productive quarterbacks to start the new season for No. 25 Southern California, he is decidedly not impressed by his play or his unbeaten Trojans.

“I don't think I'm comfortable at all right now,” Maiava said. “I think there's a lot to learn from.”

Even if Maiava is always searching to be better, there's no denying the numbers posted by Lincoln Riley's offense have been impressive.

Maiava has thrown for 989 yards despite only playing about nine quarters in the Trojans’ three comfortable wins, racking up six touchdowns with no interceptions while completing 68.6% of his passes for a team averaging 55 points per game. He leads the nation with 14.1 yards per pass attempt, and his 94.3 QB rating is also tops in the Bowl Subdivision.

But without disrespecting the first quarter of USC's schedule, Maiava realizes the Trojans (3-0, 1-0 Big Ten) have yet to be severely tested after opening their season against Missouri State, Georgia Southern and rebuilding Purdue.

“You don’t want to get complacent,” Maiava said. “When you get a little success, you don’t want to fall back. You just want to work harder and sharpen that edge.”

The Trojans' season gets serious when they host Michigan State (3-0) late Saturday night in the schools’ first meeting in 35 years. The Spartans haven’t played at the Coliseum since 1978, and a healthy crowd is expected for both teams' biggest challenge of the season.

Maiava went 3-1 last season after replacing Miller Moss as the Trojans' starter in November, beating Nebraska and UCLA before rallying the Trojans past Texas A&M in a thrilling Las Vegas Bowl. Maiava's arm strength and playmaking ability were a refreshing contrast to Moss' more pocket-based game, and Riley believes Maiava has taken another significant step forward this season.

In a telling measure of Maiava's comfort level so far this year, he has run the ball only 11 times for 24 yards and a touchdown. Maiava is a talented runner who had 277 yards rushing as a freshman at UNLV in 2023 before adding four more rushing TDs in his four games for USC last season, but he hasn't had the need to carry the ball much this season.

"I think we've got better guys to run the ball," Maiava said. “Being able to get them the rock is huge for me, and then it's whatever the defense gives me.”

Riley's belief in Maiava has been steady since the longtime quarterback guru promoted Maiava last fall — but Maiava also has the motivation of realizing that USC's next quarterback is probably watching him from the sideline.

Husan Longstreet, one of the nation's top QB recruits, played well in the second half of the Trojans' first two games after Maiava put them well ahead. Maiava has one year of eligibility remaining after the current season, and his own strong play potentially could force some difficult decisions for the two quarterbacks and Riley.

But after two straight mediocre seasons, Riley and the Trojans have learned not to plan too far ahead for success or failure. They're also facing a gauntlet over the next month, with a Coliseum visit from the 21st-ranked Michigan Wolverines sandwiched between trips to No. 9 Illinois and No. 24 Notre Dame.

“You've just got to keep going,” Riley said. “The best teams and the best players just continue to get better.”

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