No. 25 USC stunned No. 2 Ohio State 30-18 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on Saturday, 31 October 2026, in the biggest upset of the college football season so far. The Trojans never trailed, turned a week of pressure on head coach Lincoln Riley into a signature win, and kept their College Football Playoff hopes alive at 7-2.
Ohio State, playing without injured starting quarterback Julian Sayin, fell to 6-2 after settling for four field goals and scoring only one touchdown. True freshman backup Luke Fahey threw for 260 yards in his first start, but the Buckeyes could not finish drives against a USC defence that stiffened in the red zone.
USC Ohio State 30-18 — Quick Reference Summary
| Detail | USC vs Ohio State, 31 October 2026 |
|---|---|
| Final score | USC 30, Ohio State 18 |
| Venue | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, California |
| Date and kick-off | Saturday, 31 October 2026, 7:30 p.m. ET / 4:30 p.m. PT |
| Rankings at kick-off | No. 25 USC, No. 2 Ohio State |
| Quarter scores | Ohio State 3-6-0-9; USC 14-6-7-3 |
| USC record after the game | 7-2 overall |
| Ohio State record after the game | 6-2 overall |
| Ohio State quarterback | Luke Fahey, in for injured Julian Sayin |
How the Trojans seized control from the opening drive
USC received the opening kick-off and struck immediately. Quarterback Jayden Maiava found Trent Mosley on a screen pass that went 69 yards for a touchdown on just the second play of the game, giving the Trojans a 7-0 lead.
Waymond Jordan added a 9-yard rushing touchdown later in the first quarter, and USC led 14-3 after the opening period. The fast start mattered because it forced Ohio State to chase the game, and the Buckeyes never caught up.
USC led 20-9 at half-time after Caden Chittenden field goals, and King Miller’s 1-yard rushing touchdown in the third quarter stretched the lead to 27-9. Ohio State finally reached the end zone with 2:12 remaining, when Fahey found Jeremiah Smith for a 1-yard touchdown, but the failed two-point conversion left the final margin at 30-18.
Why Ohio State’s offence stalled in the red zone
The clearest difference was finishing. USC scored touchdowns when it reached scoring range, while Ohio State kicked four field goals before its late touchdown. That pattern kept the Buckeyes within reach on the scoreboard without ever putting real pressure on USC.
Fahey finished 21 of 38 passing for 260 yards with one touchdown and no turnover in the reporting of his first start, according to USA Today and Columbus Dispatch coverage. He also took sacks and lost composure at times as USC’s lead grew, but the wider problems were discipline and defence.
Ohio State was flagged 11 times for 75 yards, matching its highest penalty total in a game since 2022. A late hit after a 44-yard Trent Mosley return helped set up a USC touchdown that made it 14-6, an example of how field position and penalties compounded.
What Maiava, Mosley and the USC defence changed
Maiava completed 15 of 22 passes for 222 yards with one touchdown and one interception, while USC rushed 27 times for 116 yards and two scores as a team. Mosley caught five passes for 101 yards and a touchdown, and tight end Mark Bowman added three catches for 79 yards, including a 70-yard catch-and-run.
Defensively, USC had entered the game having allowed big plays, yet it held Ohio State to field goals on repeated trips inside scoring range. Ohio State had entered the weekend as one of only two Football Bowl Subdivision teams that had not allowed a play from scrimmage of 40 or more yards, and USC broke that run with completions of 69 and 70 yards.
For Riley, the win was his first against a top-five team since 2017, when he was at Oklahoma and also beat Ohio State. It arrived seven days after USC lost 27-7 at Wisconsin, a result that had intensified questions about his future in his fifth season at USC.
Field storm, goalposts and the Big Ten question
USC fans stormed the field at the Coliseum after the final whistle and tore down the goalposts, celebrating a win that revived a season that had looked in danger of slipping away. USA Today reported that the Big Ten does not have an escalating fine system for field-storming like some other conferences, and that any decision on a fine would likely come on Sunday, 1 November.
The celebration also underlined the stakes. USC had not beaten a No. 2 team since beating Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl in 2004, according to 247Sports’ instant analysis, and this was described across US coverage as Riley’s biggest win since arriving in Los Angeles in November 2021.
Ohio State coach Ryan Day summed up the loss in two words, according to the Dispatch’s live coverage: “Too many mistakes.” That verdict covered penalties, red-zone failures and the big plays allowed on defence, rather than Fahey alone.
What the upset does to the College Football Playoff race
USC, now 7-2, still has a demanding finish, with remaining games against No. 4 Indiana, Maryland and No. 7 UCLA reported in US coverage. A 2-1 record in those games could keep the Trojans in Playoff contention, with the UCLA game potentially carrying a Playoff place.
Ohio State, now 6-2, has very little margin for error. The Buckeyes still face Oregon on 7 November, plus Northwestern, Nebraska and Michigan, and must regroup quickly to keep their own Playoff hopes realistic.
The result also reshapes the Big Ten picture. Ohio State fell to third in the conference standings at 4-1 in Big Ten play, behind the leaders, while USC improved to 4-2 in the conference. That context is why a single Halloween night in Los Angeles carried weight far beyond one upset.
For readers following a busy weekend of sport, the Chelsea 2-0 win over Manchester United at Stamford Bridge was another Saturday result where the favourite’s night unravelled, while the Warriors’ 112-95 NBA Cup win over the Lakers showed how quickly a big deficit can be erased. The USC result belongs in that same weekend pattern: the team that started fastest, finished its chances and avoided self-inflicted errors won.
External reporting on the upset is consistent across outlets: USA Today’s live score and updates page records the 30-18 final and quarter-by-quarter scoring, and the Columbus Dispatch’s four lessons from the loss details the penalties, the 30 points allowed for the first time under defensive coordinator Matt Patricia, and the red-zone failures.
USC Ohio State upset — questions answered
What was the final score of USC vs Ohio State? USC won 30-18 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on 31 October 2026, leading 14-3 after the first quarter, 20-9 at half-time and 27-9 in the third quarter.
Why was Ohio State’s starting quarterback not playing? Julian Sayin was out after suffering an injury to his throwing arm during Ohio State’s win against Indiana on 17 October, and true freshman Luke Fahey started in his place.
Who starred for USC? Jayden Maiava threw for 222 yards, Trent Mosley caught five passes for 101 yards and a touchdown, and Waymond Jordan and King Miller scored rushing touchdowns.
Does USC still have a College Football Playoff chance? Yes, at 7-2 USC remains in contention, but the remaining schedule against Indiana, Maryland and UCLA leaves little room for another slip.
What happens next for Ohio State? Ohio State, now 6-2, returns to action against Oregon on 7 November and must cut penalties and red-zone failures to stay in the Playoff race.
Myth-busting note: Some early social-media summaries described USC as unranked; USC entered the game ranked No. 25, not unranked, in the rankings cited by USA Today and other US coverage. Likewise, the upset was not decided by one late play: USC never trailed and led by 18 points in the third quarter before Ohio State’s late touchdown.
