Utah State (1-0, 0-0 MWC) at No. 13 USC (1-0, 0-0 Big Ten)

• Kick-off: Saturday, 9:00pm MDT
• Location: LA Memorial Coliseum
• TV: Big Ten Network
• Radio: KZNS 1280 The Zone
• Series: USC holds a 6-0 all-time lead over USU. The most recent game — played in 2016 — was a 45-7 victory for the Trojans.
• Weather: Clear skies with temperatures around 27 degrees at the start.

The trends

For Utah State: The Aggies are 1-0 after a 36-14 win over Robert Morris in their season opener. Utah State started slowly against the Colonials, but rallied from a first-half deficit for a convincing win. USU finished with 646 yards of total offense — 343 passing and 303 rushing — which was tied for the ninth-most yards in school history.

For USC: The Trojans are 1-0 after a thrilling 27-20 win over LSU in Las Vegas. USC, now ranked 13th in the country, was led by quarterback Miller Moss, who threw for nearly 400 yards (378) and a touchdown, while completing 75 percent of his pass attempts. More importantly, the Trojans appear to have rediscovered defense under new defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn. USC held LSU to 421 total yards of offense, including just 117 rushing yards.

What should you pay attention to?

Self-inflicted wounds.

If there was one thing the Aggies struggled with against Robert Morris, it was mistakes that could be corrected.

USU gave the ball away three times — all interceptions — and all three were preventable. The first, an interception by Spencer Petras, was the result of a fall by wide receiver Jalen Royals on a timed route. The second, another Petras interception, occurred when a Robert Morris defender jumped a route that USU wide receiver Otto Tia was a bit slow to get to. The third and final turnover, an interception by backup quarterback Bryson Barnes, came in an aggressive manner just before halftime.

But it didn’t stop at turnovers.

The Aggies were also punished heavily, many at inopportune times. USU finished with 10 penalties for 105 yards and saw several promising offensive drives cut short by stalling along the offensive line.

And then there were the big plays that the defense allowed.

Overall, USU was much improved defensively in the season opener, compared to the end of the 2023 season. USU shut out Robert Morris in the second half, limited the Colonials to just 362 total yards of offense and held RMU to an average of 4.9 yards per carry and 7.8 yards per reception.

The Aggies only messed up a couple of key sequences. A play-action pass where a cornerback lost track of a tight end. A screen pass where multiple Aggie defenders took bad angles and missed tackles.

Those mistakes, and a few others, were the reason Robert Morris put points on the board at all.

If you address those three areas (losses, penalties and big plays allowed by the defense), the Aggies go from a team that briefly struggled against an FCS opponent to a team that can be a threat to just about anyone.

Of course, USC is no ordinary team. The Trojans are one of the most talented teams in the country — ranked in the top 15 by 247 Sports — and with a defense that looks dramatically better, USC will be a significant challenge.

Key player

USC wide receiver Zachariah Branch: The Trojans have no shortage of skill position players who can make a real impact, but perhaps the most important of them all is Branch, not just for his skills as a receiver, but also for his impact as a punt/kick returner.

There may not be a better returner in the country than Branch, who was a first-team All-American (returner specialist) in 2023 as a true freshman, the first in USC history. The numbers speak for themselves.

As USC’s return specialist, he recorded 442 yards on 24 kickoff returns (18.4 avg.) with a long of 96 yards and a touchdown. He also recorded 332 yards on 16 punt returns (30.8 avg.) with a long of 75 yards, including another touchdown.

Branch is the type of player who can break the game open with one point, making it all the more important that the Aggies — and especially punter Stephen Kotsanlee — keep the ball out of his hands.

“That’s (our) No. 1 priority, right? That’s probably the fastest player in the country,” USU interim head coach Nate Dreiling said. “We need Elliott Nimrod on kickoffs to kick it like he did (against Robert Morris). Make sure the ball is out of the end zone and they can’t return it. And then Stephen and the rest of the punt team have to be on point. He (Branch) is such a phenomenal player and they do a great job, not just on special teams. When the defense is on the field, you have to eliminate his touches. He can take (one) whenever he wants. We have to be on point.”

Quotable

“I think it’s never about who you’re playing. Whether you’re playing Auburn, SC or the Dallas Cowboys. As long as you’re improving and focusing on what you need to do to be successful, you’ve always got a chance. We’ve got to slow the game down a little bit, take advantage of some turnovers, force them to make some bad throws. Ultimately, if we have the right mindset, it’ll all work out. I’m looking forward to seeing what kind of team is going to show the world and be resilient. It just has to be the team we saw in the second half. We don’t have time to make the deal in the first half, we’ve got to go at it.” — Utah State coach Nate Dreiling

“They’ve obviously had some coaching changes and turnovers, but they seemed to handle it well and really settle in and have a good first game, especially in the second half. … (Bryson Barnes is a) really good player. Obviously, we know that. Watched him last year. They (Utah State) have some really good skill position kids around him. Were really productive in their first game.” — USC coach Lincoln Riley

Next

State of Utah: against No. 11 Utah; USC: at Michigan

Utah State Schedule

• August 31: Utah State 36, Robert Morris 14
• Sept. 7: at USC (9 p.m., Big Ten Network)
• September 14: Utah (2:30 p.m., CBS Sports Network)
• September 21: at Temple (tbc)
• September 28: Day
• Oct 5: at Boise State (TBA)
• Oct. 11: UNLV (7 p.m., CBS Sports Network)
• Oct. 19: New Mexico (2 p.m., TruTV)
• Oct. 26: at Wyoming (5 p.m., CBS Sports Network)
• November 2: Day
• Nov 9: at Washington State (TBA)
• Nov 16: Hawaii (1:00 p.m., Spectrum Sports)
• Nov. 23: San Diego State (1:30 p.m., CBS Sports Network)
• November 29: at Colorado State (TBA)

All times Mountain Time Zone.