Missouri State (0-0) vs USC (0-0)
August 30, 2025 at 07:30 PM EDT
The Line: Betting Odds: USC -35 — Over/Under: +59.5
In this article we will formulate a Missouri State vs USC prediction for this College Football game on Saturday, August 30th at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California. Let’s take a look at the prediction for this week 1 matchup.
Missouri State Bears Betting Preview
The Missouri State Bears went 8-4 (6-2) last season and they finished tied for fourth in the Missouri Valley Conference with Illinois State. This will be Missouri State’s first season in the FBS and they will be in Conference-USA. Missouri State did play one FBS team last year, which was a 42-34 loss against Ball State. The Bears picked up wins against Lindenwood, UT Martin, Youngstown State, Illinois State, Indiana State, Northern Iowa, Southern Illinois, and Murray State, while they lost to Ball State, Montana, North Dakota State, and South Dakota State. Missouri State had a great season and three of their losses came against teams ranked in the top three of the FCS.
This year, Missouri State returns Jacob Clark at quarterback, who was one of the better FCS quarterbacks last year. The Bears did lose their top receiver from last season and they lost a ton of production in the backfield, but they did bring in some solid options from the portal. On defense, Missouri State has some work to do, as they were roughed up by the better teams on their schedule last year. I think the defense will end up being fine, but the non-conference could be tough.
USC Trojans Betting Preview
The USC Trojans were 7-6 (4-5) in 2024 and they finished tied for ninth in the Big Ten standings with Rutgers and Washington. USC went on a three game losing streak in the middle of the season, which really set them back in the Big Ten race. The Trojans picked up wins against LSU, Utah State, Wisconsin, Rutgers, Nebraska, and UCLA, while they lost to Michigan, Minnesota, Penn State, Maryland, Washington, and Notre Dame. USC did go to the Las Vegas Bowl, where they beat Texas A&M by a score of 35-31. USC scored 30.2 points per game last year, which was ranked 51st in the country, while they allowed 24.1 points against per game, which was 57th.
This season, USC will start Jayden Maiava at quarterback, who transferred from UNLV, but he has plenty to prove that he can succeed in the Big Ten. The Trojans did lose a lot of production at receiver, but this is a Lincoln Riley offense, they will be fine in the passing game. The running game also took a hit from last year and the offensive line is rebuilt, so there is plenty to figure out for USC. On defense, the Trojans were actually pretty solid last year and they should be even better in 2025. USC returns a lot of players from last year’s unit and picked up some help in the secondary from the portal.
Total Points Facts
- Four of USC’s last five games against non-conference opponents at United Airlines Field at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum have gone OVER the total points line.
Matchup/League Facts
- USC have had suffered the equal-most road losses by a margin of three points or less of any FBS team last season (2).
- Eight of USC’s 13 games last season have been decided by a margin of seven points or less – equal-most amongst FBS teams.
Missouri State vs USC Prediction
USC only went 7-6 last year, but they finished the year with a great win over Texas A&M and they have a defense that could really succeed in the Big Ten. The Trojans do have some question marks on offense, but they should be able to figure that out against a lesser opponent here. Missouri State had a very successful 2024 season in the FCS and they have plenty of experience, so they might be able to keep this game close. I think USC’s offense is going to start slow and while they will pull away in the second half, I have to take Missouri State with all of these points.