USC vs. TCU: What to watch during Alamo Bowl as D’Anton Lynn coaches his Trojans finale

Two weeks before the Alamo Bowl, USC got its best news of the bowl season: Star quarterback Jayden Maiava was forgoing the NFL draft to stay in L.A. for another year.

Two days later, TCU’s star quarterback, Josh Hoover, delivered his own announcement: He was entering the transfer portal.

Those two decisions will have the teams in drastically different places on offense. USC won’t have two of its starting offensive linemen or most of its regular receiving corps, but will have one of the Big Ten’s best quarterbacks at the helm. TCU, meanwhile, has most of its offense available, including star receiver Eric McAlister, but a backup quarterback who last started in 2023 in Ken Seals.

“Ken started 22 games in the SEC,” TCU coach Sonny Dykes said. “He’s been a great teammate, a great practice player. Now he’s going to get a chance to go perform on the big stage.”

Maiava should get plenty of chances Tuesday to show why he’ll be seen as a serious Heisman contender next season. TCU struggles to pressure opposing passers, ranks 109th in the nation in yards allowed through the air and has yet to face a passing attack this season as prolific as USC’s.

Not to mention there’s a notable calm to Maiava that wasn’t there at this point last bowl season.

“He’s just taken giant steps,” offensive coordinator Luke Huard said. “[You] just see him playing free and with a lot of confidence.”

What’s not clear is how much he’ll play, with freshman Husan Longstreet waiting in the wings and USC still hoping he’ll settle for another season sitting behind Maiava.