Grant Wilson threw for 305 yards and two touchdowns on Nov. 14, 2026, leading ninth-ranked Indiana to a 27-13 victory over No. 18 USC at Memorial Stadium in Bloomington, Ind.
The win strengthens the defending national champions’ grip on the Big Ten race while dealing a severe blow to the Trojans’ College Football Playoff hopes. Indiana moved to 9-1 overall and 6-1 in conference play, relying on a ferocious defense that intercepted USC quarterback Jayden Maiava three times and a passing attack that finally broke loose under a new signal-caller.
The game kicked off at 3:30 p.m. ET as the first matchup between the two programs since 1982, played in a cold snap where kickoff temperatures dropped to 46 degrees.
GRANT TO CHARLIE OH MY GOODNESS. 🤯#IUFB 27, USC 13 | 3:30 4Q pic.twitter.com/ZiRwayP8AY
“It has been a long road,” Wilson said after the game, according to Sports Illustrated. “God’s so good. Looking back, my first year at Fordham, being here right now, it’s a blessing. I never thought I’d be here, but it is good to have a shot again.”
Wilson responded by completing 17 of 27 passes for a career-high 305 yards and two touchdowns, hitting Brock Schott for a 13-yard score in the first quarter and connecting with Charlie Becker on a 42-yard touchdown with 3:30 remaining to put the game away.
Wilson also completed passes of 42 yards to Becker, 47 yards to Shazz Preston, and 65 yards to Nick Marsh, achieving a 63 percent accuracy mark that stood as the Hoosiers’ best since the Rutgers game.
“We’ve been kind of playing in a tent, so to speak, the last two weeks,” Cignetti said. “Conservative. We all hated it.” Cignetti had earlier posted a message on his official X account challenging the ranking committee’s logic regarding bad losses before his team backed up his words on the field.
Bad losses don't count anymore? 😂😂😂😂😂😂 Are first downs still 10 yards?🤡🤡🤡
USC (7-3, 4-3) answered an early deficit when Maiava tossed a 7-yard touchdown pass to Zacharyus Williams before halftime, capping a drive set up by a tipped-pass interception from Deven Bryant and a 51-yard completion to Kayden Dixon-Wyatt to tie the score at 10-10.
The Trojans eventually knotted the game at 13-13 in the third quarter before Indiana took control. Lee Beebe Jr. added 71 yards on 16 carries for Indiana against USC.
Defensively, Indiana bottled up USC in the red zone and forced critical turnovers. Freshman Jacob Savage stepped up in place of Hardy to record a career-high 13 tackles along with a pass breakup and a quarterback pressure, while Preston Zachman added 10 tackles.
Isaiah Jones and Jamari Sharpe anchored a secondary that intercepted Maiava three times, including a red-zone pick by Jones and a 34-yard return by Sharpe in the final minutes that slammed the door on any comeback.
Isaiah Jones, one of the few remaining pre-Cignetti Hoosiers, with a huuuge play picking off Maiava at the goal line. Indiana still only up 7, not safe yet.
“Ultimately, we made too many mistakes in this game,” USC head coach Lincoln Riley said, according to Annenberg Media. Riley also noted postgame that his squad dropped as many as four potential interceptions.
The Trojans return to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on Saturday, Nov. 21, to face the Maryland Terrapins at 3:15 p.m. PST.
Earlier coverage: Indiana Drops in College Football Playoff Rankings After Bye Week
BONES JONES SNAGS IT.#IUFB 20, USC 13 | 6:35 4Q pic.twitter.com/zKaszMBvrS