USC Football Will Complete its Playoff Dreams With Game At UCLA

Lincoln Riley and his No.19 USC Trojan football team will travel across town to play the No.12 UCLA Bruins on Nov. 28.

The winner of this game might be headed to the playoffs while the loser will probably play in a lesser bowl game.

The rivalry between these two teams is intense. It is the only major college football rivalry where both schools are in the same city. USC holds an edge in the all-time matchup at 54-34-7. USC (6-1) also leads the rivalry with the games played in the Rose Bowl, 26-17-3.

The 5-0 Bruins are in the midst of a bounce back season after going 3-9 in 2025. New head coach Bob Chesney came to Westwood after leading the James Madison Dukes to the playoffs in 2025.

UCLA has its first 5-0 start since 2022. 

The Bruins are coming off of a major win against the Oregon Ducks. Cheney did what Lincoln Riley has yet to do, beat Oregon head coach Dan Lanning. What is even more remarkable is that USC had a ten-game home win streak before falling to the Ducks 41-27 in the Coliseum.

Riley faced tremendous heat from the Los Angeles media after the Oregon game. Riley stated many times in the offseason that “the championship window is open”. To USC fans that means a playoff berth at a minimum.

USC has a bye in week seven, but has notable games against the No.5 Ohio State Buckeyes and No.4 Indiana Hoosiers. The Trojans will also play the  unranked Wisconsin Badgers and Maryland Terrapins. 

At 6-1 USC can't afford to get to three losses. A 9-3 team has never made it to the college football playoffs. Assuming they beat the Maryland Terrapins and the Wisconsin Badgers, USC can afford to split the Ohio State and Indiana games.

What is left after that is UCLA, whose remaining schedule is much lighter than that of USC. The only ranked team left on UCLA’s schedule is USC. 

The question facing UCLA is what will they look like after losing their starting quarterback Nico Iamaleava. Between the Tennessee Volunteers and UCLA, Iamaleava has started a total of 29 games in the SEC and Big Ten.

Replacing that kind of experience will be a challenge for Chesney.

It is realistic that UCLA will feel the impact of losing their starting quarterback with games at the Wisconsin Badgers and Michigan Wolverines. It's realistic that the home games against the Minnesota Gophers and Illinois Fighting Illini  will not be a cake walk without their leader at quarterback.

The game between USC and UCLA could be two 9-2 teams playing a game where the winner has a shot at going to the playoffs, while the loser goes home.

Both teams have significant challenges ahead, but for right now it looks like Nov. 28 in Pasadena will be a win or go home type of game.