The University of Illinois football team's Week 4 drive to Bloomington, Indiana didn’t end well, as the Hoosiers whupped the Fighting Illini, 63-10, a gnarly loss that plummeted the Illini down No. 23 in the AP rankings.
Standing in the way of redemption here in Week 5 are the undefeated USC Trojans, a team that's looked awfully good their four outings.
Below are our USC vs. Illinois prediction and CFB picks for Week 5, with a focus on USC QB Jayden Maiava and RB Waymond Jordan.
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USC vs. Illinois Prediction, Picks for Week 5
USC (4-0) heads to Memorial Stadium in Champaign, IL for an AP Top-25 showdown. Both teams enter ranked, but whoever comes out on the losing end might find themselves out of the voters' good graces.
Dating back to last year, the Trojans have won six of their last seven regular season games, and they’ve started off hot here in 2025, picking up two conference wins in their first four games.
Illinois, who easily won their first three games, is looking to avoid an 0-2 start in Big 10 play.
USC Trojans Preview
One of the most fascinating things about USC this season has been their high-scoring offense — the Trojans put up 73 points in Week 1, followed by 59, 33, and then 45 last week against Michigan State. In conference play, they’ve outscored Purdue and Michigan State, 78-48.
Moving forward, they’re tasked with a daunting three-game slate against opponents all ranked in the AP Top 25 — after facing Illinois, they’ll have a week off before facing No. 19 Michigan, then No. 22 Notre Dame.
Illinois Fighting Illini Preview
On September 20, the Illini gave up a whopping 63 points to Indiana. It was a statement win for the Hoosiers, and potentially a much-needed wakeup call for this Illinois squad.
No. 21 USC marks the second of three games against ranked over a four week stretch. Luckily for the Illini, once they get past OSU on October 11, they don’t have any other currently ranked opponents on their schedule.
Before the loss, some felt this Illinois team could make it to the College Football Playoffs, but starting 0-2 in the Big 10 start would be a death sentence.
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USC QB Jayden Maiava Projection - 268.5 Passing Yards
The Hawaiian signal caller is coming off the first game this season in which he didn’t throw for more than 268 yards; in his three previous outings, he tossed for 295, 412, and 282 yards.
His 234-yard Week 4 performance came with a trio of touchdowns, as USC dominated Michigan State.
In terms of defending the quarterback position, Illinois isn't exactly elite, as Duke lit them up 45-16 on September 6, when they allowed Blue Devils’ QB Darian Mensah to throw for 334 yards.
USC RB Waymond Jordan Projection- 89.5 Rushing Yards
Jordan already has a pair of 100+ yard games this season, highlighted by last week's 157-yard explosion against Michigan State.
Two weeks prior, the 5'9", 210-pound bruiser ran ball 16 times for 167 yards against a Georgia Southern team that's allowed less than 34 points in just one of their four games. He'll see another soft defense, as the Fighting Illini gave up 312 rushing yards last week.
Indiana had three running backs with 60+ yards, while the week prior, they allowed 113 rushing yards to Western Michigan.
Illinois WR Hank Beatty Projection- 56.5 Receiving Yards
Illinois senior WR Hank Beatty is coming off a game in which he had just 2 receptions for 13 yards against Indiana. Luckily for him, USC's D allowed over 300 passing yards to Purdue just two weeks ago, while last week, they gave up 212 yards to Michigan State.
So far this season, Beatty leads Illinois in receiving with 21 receptions for 302 yards, exactly double that of WR Collin Dixon. Beatty hauled in 5+ receptions in each of his first three games, looking especially phenomenal in Weeks 1 and 2, when he posted 100+ yards against, respectively, Western Illinois and Duke.
Illinois isn't super-deep at receiver, something that could benefit Beatty; should they once again trail early, they’ll virtually have no choice but to throw the ball. And the majority of those targets could go Beatty’s way.
Make USC vs. Illinois Picks on PrizePicks
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