USC Downs Huskers In Lincoln
Lincoln - Emmett Johnson carried 29 times for 165 yards and a touchdown on his way to crossing the 1,000-yard mark for the season and the 2,000-yard plateau for his career, but it was not enough to prevent Nebraska from suffering a 21-17 setback to No. 23 USC on Saturday night at Memorial Stadium.
Nebraska slipped to 6-3 overall and 3-3 in the Big Ten, while USC improved to 6-2 and 4-1 in the conference, despite the Blackshirts holding the nation's No. 1 overall offense and No. 1 passing offense nearly 200 yards under their season averages.
The Huskers played a strong first half in all phases, as the Blackshirts kept the high-power Trojan offense out of the end zone, while Johnson and quarterback Dylan Raiola helped the Big Red offense to a pair of touchdown drives.
Nebraska closed the first half with momentum, taking a 14-6 lead to halftime after a 10-yard Johnson touchdown run with 1:37 left in the second quarter. Not only did the Huskers take the eight-point lead, they also stopped USC on the ensuing drive and started the second half with the ball.
Johnson carried much of the load for the Huskers in the first half, carrying 15 times for 76 yards and a touchdown, while Raiola completed 10-of-13 passes for 91 yards and a 14-yard touchdown strike to Dane Key.
The Huskers were unable to get anything going on their opening drive of the second half, but on USC's first snap, Andrew Marshall pulled down the first interception of his career to set Nebraska's offense up at the USC 34.
Raiola and the Husker offense picked up a first down, but on 1st-and-10 from the USC 23, Raiola was sacked, fumbled and was knocked out of the game with a lower leg injury. Although Raiola continued to move up and down the sideline, he did not return to play.
The Blackshirts responded by holding USC on 4th-and-1 at the NU 47, and freshman TJ Lateef made his Big Ten debut, moving Nebraska within field goal range. But a 52-yard Kyle Cunanan attempt on 4th-and-1 at the USC 34 hit the right upright and fell to the ground in the freshly painted black north end zone.
Jayden Maiava and the USC offense capitalized five plays later with Maiava's 16-yard touchdown run to put the exclamation point on a 66-yard drive to pull within 14-12. USC went for the tie and King Miller converted with a run to tie the score at 14.
Lateef and the Husker offense found a response of their own, marching 57 yards on 10 plays capped by Cunanan's 39-yard field goal to put the Big Red back in front, 17-14, with 12:53 remaining. Lateef finished the game 5-of-7 passing, but the completions covered just seven yards. He added six carries for 18 yards on the ground.
The USC offense then supplied its final answer on the following drive with a six-play, 75-yard march kick-started by a 43-yard pass from Maiava to Jaden Richardson on 2nd-and-10 from the USC 25. It was Richardson's only catch of the night, while Maiava finished just 9-of-23 passing for 135 and an interceptions - nearly 200 yards below USC's nation-leading season average of 326 yards per game. It marked the first time in 83 games that the Trojans were held under 150 yards passing. Maiava added 62 yards on the ground, including USC's first touchdown.
Miller, who did consistent damage in the Trojan rushing game throughout the night, capped game-winning drive with his six-yard touchdown run with 10:06 left. He finished with 129 yards on 18 carries with a touchdown, as USC produced 202 rushing yards on the night.
USC finished with 337 total yards - as the Blackshirts held the Trojans nearly 200 yards below their nation-leading season average of 530 yards per game.
The Trojan defense held the Husker offense to just 286 total yards, including 188 rushing and 98 passing.
Javin Wright led the Blackshirts with 11 tackles, including a sack and a breakup, while Rex Guthrie added eight stops and DeShon Singleton and Vincent Shavers Jr. each contributed six tackles.
Nebraska returns to Big Ten road action next week when the Huskers travel to the Rose Bowl to battle UCLA. Kickoff with the Bruins is set for 8 p.m. (CT) with live national telecast on FOX.
Game Summary
#23 USC 21
Nebraska 17
Saturday, Nov. 1, 2025
Memorial Stadium (Lincoln, Neb.)
Attendance: 86,529
First Quarter (NEB 7-0)
NEB - 6:29 - Dane Key 14 pass from Dylan Raiola (Kyle Cunanan kick), 14 plays, 75 yards, 7:01, NEB 7-0
Second Quarter (NEB 14-6)
USC - 13:23 - Ryon Sayeri 24 FG, 11 plays, 74 yards, 4:35, NEB 7-3
USC - 6:07 - Ryon Sayeri 49 FG, 10 plays, 53 yards, 4:22, NEB 7-6
NEB - 1:37 - Emmett Johnson 10 run (Cunanan kick, 8 plays, 75 yards, 4:25, NEB 14-6
Third Quarter (14-14)
USC - 3:32 - Jayden Maiava 16 run (2PAT run King Miller), 5 plays, 66 yards, 1:51, 14-14
Fourth Quarter (USC 21-17)
NEB - 12:53 - Cunanan 39 FG, 10 plays, 57 yards, 5:33, NEB 17-14
USC - 10:06 - Miller 8 run, 6 plays, 75 yards, 2:47, USC 21-17
Kickoff: 6:37 p.m. (CT)
Length of Game: 3:17