Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1540307
BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM OCT. 18, 2025 33 GAME PREVIEW: SOUTHERN CAL "That's what he's done in all of his starts for us, even going back to last year," Riley told WeAreSC.com. "When he's had a stretch that maybe wasn't his best, he's always responded. It did not surprise me one bit." Maiava is 6-foot-4, 230 pounds with a cannon of an arm. He primarily uses that arm to fire darts toward Lemon, who leads the Trojans with 46 targets and 35 receptions. The next-highest to- tals are 13 (Lane) and 12 (veteran tight end Lake McRee), respectively. Riley coached first-round wide re- ceivers Hollywood Brown and CeeDee Lamb at Oklahoma, as well as Jordan Addison at Southern Cal. Lemon is starting to appear in that conversation. "I don't rank 'em while they play for me, but he's playing good ball for us right now," Riley told On3. "I mean, his versatility and consistency really stand out to me in the way that he's been playing." Lemon plays 65.9 percent of his snaps in the slot and 33.3 percent out wide, meaning he can and will line up any- where. The St. Brown comparisons were inevitable, but FOX Sports analyst Joel Klatt said Lemon reminds him of for- mer Ohio State and current Seattle Sea- hawks star Jaxon Smith-Njigba. "He's a guy that we feel like can do a lot of different things well on the field, and that allows us to use him in dif- ferent areas and be creative and try to get him in situations where we feel like the advantage is going to be ours," Riley said. Lane and McRee are strong comple- mentary weapons, averaging 21.4 and 20.7 yards per reception, respectively. The Trojans can also run the ball, with a rushing attack led by Waymond Jordan. The junior college product had 77 car- ries for 537 yards (7.0 yards per attempt) through five games in his first season with the Trojans. Scoring is not Southern Cal's prob- lem. Much like in 2024, it's making plays when it counts. SEASON-DEFINING STRETCH What happened after Lemon's go- ahead touchdown at Illinois with 1:55 to go was all too predictable for Southern Cal. The Fighting Illini got the ball back, down by one point, and simply ran Facts & Figures SOUTHERN CAL AT NOTRE DAME Date: Oct. 18, 2025 Site (Capacity): Notre Dame Stadium (77,622) Kickoff: 7:30 p.m. ET Television: NBC/Peacock Radio: This game can be heard on Notre Dame IMG affiliates. Series Facts: Notre Dame leads 52-38-5. The Irish have won six of the past seven matchups, including a 49-35 win on Nov. 30, 2024, in Los Angeles that clinched Notre Dame's College Football Playoff berth. The Trojans have not won in South Bend since Oct. 22, 2011. Notre Dame and Southern Cal's current contract ends after the 2025 season and the two sides have not agreed on an extension. Head coaches: Southern Cal — Lincoln Riley (31-15, 4th season); Notre Dame — Marcus Freeman (37-12, 4th season). Noting Southern Cal: Only two ranked wins since 2022 for Riley (2023 Holiday Bowl over No. 15 Lou- isville; 2024 season opener over No. 13 LSU) … Top two defenders to know are linebacker Eric Gentry (35 tackles, 3 sacks) and safety Bishop Fitzgerald (25 tackles, 3 interceptions) … Trojans rank 64th in scoring defense at 23.0 points per game, particularly struggling against the pass (7.7 opponent yards per attempt, tied for 99th in college football) … Reserve safety Kennedy Urlacher transferred from Notre Dame in April … Only three Trojans were drafted into the NFL this year, led by cornerback Jaylin Smith (third round, No. 97 overall). 2025 NOTRE DAME SCHEDULE Date Opponent (TV) Time (ET)/Result Aug. 31 at Miami L, 27-24 Sept. 13 Texas A&M L, 41-40 Sept. 20 Purdue W, 56-30 Sept. 27 at Arkansas W, 56-13 Oct. 4 Boise State W, 28-7 Oct. 11 NC State W, 36-7 Oct. 18 Southern Cal (NBC) 7:30 p.m. Nov. 1 at Boston College TBA Nov. 8 Navy (NBC) 7:30 p.m. Nov. 15 at Pittsburgh TBA Nov. 22 Syracuse (NBC) 3:30 p.m. Nov. 29 at Stanford TBA 2025 SOUTHERN CAL SCHEDULE Date Opponent (TV) Time (ET)/Result Aug. 30 Missouri State W, 73-13 Sept. 6 Georgia Southern W, 59-20 Sept. 13 at Purdue W, 33-17 Sept. 20 Michigan State W, 45-31 Sept. 27 at Illinois L, 34-32 Oct. 11 Michigan W, 31-13 Oct. 18 at Notre Dame (NBC) 7:30 p.m. Nov. 1 at Nebraska TBD Nov. 7 Northwestern (FOX) 9 p.m. Nov. 15 Iowa 3 or 3:30 p.m. Nov. 22 at Oregon TBD Nov. 29 UCLA TBD During Southern Cal's 4-1 start, redshirt junior quarterback Jayden Maiava completed 70.5 percent of his passes for 1,587 yards with 11 touchdowns and just 1 interception. PHOTO COURTESY SOUTHERN CAL ATHLETICS