USC Beats No. 2 Ohio State 30-18 for Riley's First Top-Five Win

USC beat No. 2 Ohio State 30-18 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on Saturday, October 31, 2026. The win was Lincoln Riley's first over a top-five opponent as USC head coach, and the New York Post called it the biggest upset of the college football season.

USC scored on the second play of the game and never lost the lead. The Trojans led 20-9 at halftime and answered Ohio State's only touchdown, which came with 2:12 left, with a late field goal to close out the 30-18 final.

A fast start USC never gave back

Freshman wide receiver Trent Mosley caught a screen pass from Jayden Maiava and scored on a 69-yard touchdown on the second play of the game, less than a minute in, to give USC a 7-0 lead.

Waymond Jordan, who missed the Wisconsin game, returned and scored on a 9-yard touchdown run that extended the lead to 14-3. Ohio State scored 3 points in the first quarter and 6 in the second. Caden Chittenden kicked a field goal before halftime to make it 20-9.

The quarter scores set the pattern for the night. USC outscored Ohio State 14-3 in the first quarter and 7-0 in the third, the teams matched 6 points each in the second, and Ohio State won the fourth quarter 9-3, too late to change the result.

Defense holds a backup quarterback in check

Ohio State played without injured starting quarterback Julian Sayin. Freshman Luke Fahey started in his place, and USC's defense kept him under pressure through the game. The Trojans sacked Fahey twice and recorded seven tackles for loss.

Ohio State kicker Connor Hawkins made four field goals, and the Buckeyes were held to one touchdown. That touchdown did not come until the final minutes, long after USC had built its lead.

The defense also produced the turnover that set up the score that stretched the game in the second half. Linebacker Desman Stephens II forced a fumble by Isaiah West, and defensive tackle Floyd Boucard recovered it. Freshman tight end Mark Bowman then made a 70-yard catch and run that set up King Miller's 1-yard touchdown run, pushing the lead to 27-9.

USC finished with 339 yards of offense on 49 plays. Ohio State held the ball for about two-thirds of the game and ran roughly double the plays, but that time with the ball produced field goals instead of touchdowns for most of the night.

A late touchdown and a record catch

Ohio State's only touchdown came with 2:12 remaining, when Fahey threw a touchdown pass to Jeremiah Smith. The New York Post reported that the catch made Smith the Big Ten's all-time receiving touchdown leader.

The two-point conversion failed. USC then added a late field goal for the 30-18 final.

What it means and what comes next

TheSpun reported that this was USC's first win over a top-five team since 2016 and its first win over a top-two team since 2004.

Ohio State entered the game 6-1 and ranked No. 2. The loss drops the Buckeyes to 6-2, their second loss of the season and their first Big Ten loss of the year.

USC improved to 7-2, one week after losing to Wisconsin.

Next, USC has a bye before travelling to play No. 4 Indiana in Bloomington. Ohio State returns home to face Oregon.