The USC Trojans have a quarterback comepetition in the spring between Miller Moss and Jayden Maiava. That’s not our opinion. That’s not any commentator’s attempt to create controversy or manufacture drama That’s Lincoln Riley’s stated plan. However, while Riley has been up front in saying this is a genuine competition, we can look beneath the surface and identify a few layers to what Riley is thinking and doing.
“Lincoln Riley said last week that he did not want a portal quarterback who was older. That quarterback obviously would have come to USC expecting to start. Otherwise, such a quarterback would not have transferred to the program. This is why Will Howard never did transfer to USC. An upperclassman would have reasonably expected to start for the Trojans. Riley didn’t want that because he wanted Miller Moss to have a chance to be the guy, but Riley did want a quarterback competition. He wanted Moss to have reasonable odds of becoming the starter instead of putting an established veteran above him.”
This is such an important point in the context of this “competition.” It is a competition, but Riley wanted the competition to be something Moss could reasonably handle. If Will Howard or another older quarterback came to USC, that quarterback would expect to start, period. Bringing in Maiava as a younger quarterback makes Moss the preferred candidate for the Week 1 start against LSU.
Put it this way: It’s still a real competition, but Maiava would have to absolutely blow out Moss — greatly exceeding him — in order to take the QB1 spot. If it’s remotely close or there’s any uncertainty at all, Moss gets the nod. Riley wanted it this way. Moss is still extremely likely to be the guy, even though it’s a legitimate competition. The contours of the competition are what you need to pay attention to.
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