San Jose St. vs. USC Prediction, Odds and Key Players to Watch for College Football Week 0

A major season is ahead for No. 14 USC and head coach Lincoln Riley, as the Trojans have sky-high expectations in the Big Ten with potential Heisman candidate Jayden Maiava leading the way at quarterback.

Last season, Maiava combined for 30 touchdowns (24 passing, six rushing) while the Trojans went 9-4 and eventually lost in the Alamo Bowl to TCU.

Now, USC has a cupcake game to open the season against the Mountain West’s San Jose State.

The Spartans were just 3-9 last season and 0-6 on the road, closing out the campaign on a four-game skid. San Jose State is turning to Hawaii transfer Luke Weaver at quarterback this season, but oddsmakers expect it to struggle on Saturday.

The Trojans are favored by 38.5 points in the latest odds for Week 0, and they’d love to start the season with a dominant win. USC has a few easy games to open the campaign before a key Big Ten showdown with Oregon at the end of September.

Here’s a look at the Week 0 matchup for USC, including the latest odds, a player to watch and my game prediction.

San Jose St. vs. USC Odds, Spread and Total

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook

Spread

San Jose St. +38.5 (-118)
USC -38.5 (-102)

Moneyline

San Jose St.: N/A
USC: N/A

Total

59.5 (Over -110/Under -110)

San Jose St. vs. USC How to Watch

Date: Saturday, Aug. 29
Time: 3:00 p.m. EST
Venue: Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
How to Watch (TV): NBC
San Jose St. record: 0-0
USC record: 0-0

San Jose St. vs. USC Key Player to Watch

Jayden Maiava, Quarterback, USC

After completing less than 60 percent of his passes in the 2024 season with the Trojans, Maiava had a massive 2025 campaign, throwing for 3,711 yards, 24 scores and 10 interceptions. He also made noise with his legs, rushing for 157 yards and six scores.

Maiava has a chance to get in the Heisman conversation if the Trojans can make the College Football Playoff, and he returns to an offense that was No. 5 in the country in EPA/Play last season, including No. 1 in EPA/Pass.

This USC team will go as far as Maiava takes them, and if he can clean up his turnovers, he has a chance to really improve his draft stock in 2026.

San Jose St. vs. USC Prediction and Pick

San Jose State opened the 2025 season on the road against Texas, losing that game 38-7.

It has a rather inexperienced quarterback in Weaver (105 career pass attempts at Hawaii) heading into this matchup against a USC team that should have an elite offense with Maiava under center.

This is a tough game to bet because of the massive spread, but oddsmakers are expecting nearly 60 points to be scored in this game. If that’s the case, I love USC’s chances over covering the number, especially since San Jose State scored less than 20 points in all four of its games to end the 2025 season.

In fact, the Spartans were outside the top-100 in the country in EPA/Play on offense.

Maybe Weaver turns that around, but I don’t expect this team to compete with a USC squad that has College Football Playoff aspirations.

Pick: USC -38.5 (-102 at DraftKings)

Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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