Quarterback Jayden Maiava re-signs with USC Trojans to return for 2026 season
Quarterback Jayden Maiava will return to the USC Trojans for the 2026 season, giving head coach Lincoln Riley a significant offensive building block heading into a difficult schedule next year. The program announced Tuesday morning that Maiava has re-signed.
The 6-foot-4, 230-pound quarterback took significant strides in his first season as the full-time starter for the Trojans. Maiava completed 66.2% of his passes (a career-high) for 3,431 yards and 23 touchdowns against eight interceptions. He also rushed 51 times for 150 yards and six scores. Those are major steps forward from what Maiava put on the field as the backup in 2024, when he completed 59.8% of his passes with an 11-to-6 touchdown-to-interception ratio. Maiava also averaged 9.2 yards per pass in 2025 compared to 7.1 in 2024.
Riley often praised Maiava’s growth from his first year at USC in 2024 to how he performed as a redshirt junior in 2025. He said the biggest positive physical development in how he played centered on his footwork. But Riley also spoke about Maiava’s mental improvements as a quarterback and a leader.
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“He grew a lot,” Riley said earlier this month. “Learned to play in different scenarios. He played with a lot of different lineups throughout the year, especially up front and then obviously the big backfield change after the Michigan game. We played against a run of really good defensive teams for a while, which you’re gonna do in this league. I thought he largely responded very well, was a much-improved player from the four games that we saw the year before. Growing as a leader. Growing in his ability to manage the game, to understand how we’re being attacked and how we want to attack, understanding of the offense, just all of it. It’s a good room…He did a lot of great things.”
Maiava threw for at least 300 yards in four games this season, and hit the 290-yard mark in two others. And he threw multiple touchdown passes in nine games, including contests against Illinois, Michigan, Notre Dame, Oregon and UCLA.
