The No. 14 USC Trojans advanced to 1-0 with a 42-26 win over San Jose State on Saturday, with 16 true freshmen contributing throughout the day.
Ahead of Saturday’s Week 0 game, head coach Lincoln Riley started five true freshmen on the depth chart. Riley started wide receivers Trent Mosley and Kayden Dixon-Wyatt, edge rusher Luke Wafle, tight end Mark Bowman and cornerback Elbert “Rock” Hill IV.
Starting quarterback Jayden Maiava was nearly perfect through three quarters of play, going 25-for-29 passing with 289 yards and three touchdowns. Maiava finished last season as the Big Ten’s leading passer and entered this season as an early Heisman candidate.
Mosley hauled in seven receptions for 118 yards and a touchdown, and Dixon-Wyatt added a touchdown pass. Notably, Mosley became the first USC true freshmen receiver to record over 100 receiving yards in his collegiate debut since Juju Smith-Schuster in 2014.
After Maiava finished his time on the field, true freshman Jontez Williams took the field for the final quarter of play, finishing the day going 5-for-7 for 55 yards and one interception.
On the ground, the Trojans running back corps added three touchdowns from running backs King Miller, Shahn Alston and Riley Wormley.
Defensively, Wafle finished with two tackles with .5 tackles-for-loss and one pass breakup as Hill also added a pair of tackles.
Despite a 28-0 lead, San Jose State’s Luke Weaver passed for 234 yards and threw fourth-quarter touchdown passes to Jerry McClure and Jordan Anderson before rushing for a late score.
The Trojans host Fresno State on Friday at 6 p.m. on FOX.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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