5 players to watch in Iowa football’s matchup at No. 17 USC

IOWA CITY — Keep marching on to Los Angeles, Hawkeyes, where the still-newly-minted USC Trojans await.

No. 17 USC football (7-2, 5-1 Big Ten) faces Iowa for the first time as a Big Ten foe, but these two programs have battled on the gridiron before. The teams have met in two bowl games recently, including at the Holiday Bowl in 2019, a 49-24 Iowa win.

Since then, the Trojans have garnered a national ranking they have held onto for the majority of the season. USC head coach Lincoln Riley has led the program to a fourth consecutive season with at least seven wins.

Ahead of Iowa’s matchup on the West Coast, here are five players to keep an eye on before entering the LA Coliseum.

QB Jayden Maiava

In his first full season as the starting quarterback, redshirt junior Jayden Maiava has recorded a total 23 touchdowns this season including two passing touchdowns and a rushing touchdown against Northwestern.

He’s thrown just six interceptions while recording 2,614 passing yards. One of those picks was against the Wildcats.

The Trojans’ quarterback has repeatedly shown he refuses to give up on plays, whether it be vacating the pocket for a late throw or scrambling for the ball after a fumble.

Maiava took over the starting role in 2024, appearing in seven total games and starting in four. Two of the three games were in Big Ten play, too. He’s held a completion rate of at least 52-percent in all but one game this season.

WR Makai Lemon

A part of the heroics against Northwestern last week, junior wide receiver Makai Lemon recorded 161 receiving yards on 11 catches, including a 52-yard pass and a touchdown.

Lemon has seven touchdowns this season, including four throughout Big Ten play. He’s had at least 60 receiving yards in all but one game, recording at least two catches every game.

Lemon is in his second season as a starter for the Trojans, and also is a returner. His career-long was an 80-yard kick return last season, and his longest this season is 24 yards — averaging 20.6 yards per return.

LB Eric Gentry

Redshirt senior linebacker Eric Gentry leads USC in tackles and is one of four Trojans with at least five tackles-for-loss. He’s second on the team with seven TFLs, pushing the offense back 26 yards. He’s also recorded three sacks, for 15 of those yards.

Gentry stands at 6-foot-6, and has recorded four forced fumbles. His best performance so far was against Georgia Southern on Sept. 6, but he’s recorded at least one solo and one assisted tackle in every game.

Gentry was a consensus freshman All-American at Arizona State before transferring to USC in 2021.

S Bishop Fitzgerald

Redshirt senior safety Bishop Fitzgerald joined the Trojans after spending time at North Carolina State and Coffeyville Community College. Before joining Power Four football, Fitzgerald was the No. 1 overall JUCO safety by 247sports.

He’s recorded five interceptions this season, although Fitzgerald hasn’t picked off a pass since facing Michigan on Oct. 11. Fitzgerald’s five picks puts him second in the country for interceptions per game. He’s recorded 49 tackles this year.

RB King Miller

Bursting onto the scene as a redshirt freshman, running back King Miller is tied for a team-high five rushing touchdowns this year. He’s scored in back-to-back games, recording just shy of 130 yards against Nebraska and Northwestern.

Miller started receiving double-digit carries in October, and nearly all of his career-highs have come against either Big Ten opponents or in Top 25 teams. Since then, he’s recorded more than 100 rushing yards in all but one game, against Notre Dame.

He’s also made two appearances as a returner, both against Michigan, where he had a 25-yard return and a 20-yard return.

Comments: madison.hricik@thegazette.com, sign up for my weekly newsletter, Hawk Off the Press, at thegazette.com/hawks.