Lavender. That’s what has USC quarterback Jayden Maiava sleeping soundly ahead of the Trojans’ Big Ten Conference opener on the road against Purdue on Saturday.
“Something with lavender helps you fall asleep more,” Maiava told reporters. “So that’s what I’ve been doing, and it’s been helping for sure.”
The Trojans (2-0) have been making intentional choices in order to ease their minds and shake off the traveling woes that manifested in a 1-4 record in road games last season.
“There’s a couple of (changes) throughout the week and it kind of all fits,” Riley said. “It’s like a puzzle – one piece affects another – but those are all things that we’ve taken into account, and I think some of those changes are going to be felt.”
Sleep has been an emphasis. They’ll travel on a bigger plane. The weekly practice schedule looks different from last season.
Now, USC practices on Sunday nights and has an off day Monday before practicing hard Tuesday and Wednesday and following up with a Friday morning practice.
The new system allows the players and coaches to accomplish more before leaving Los Angeles, leaving just a few meetings to be had when they arrive.
Preparation was especially key this week, not just because of the travel involved, but also because Purdue (2-0) looks dramatically different from last season personnel-wise after 56 players transferred out of the program and 54 transfers arrived.
The change came about after the firing of previous head coach Ryan Walters and the hiring of new head coach Barry Odom.
“They’ve got 54 transfers, which is more than anybody else in the country,” CBS play-by-play sportscaster Brad Nessler said, “and I think if you add their signees and their walk-ons, they probably had 82 more players in uniform the first two weeks of the season than they would’ve a year ago. So it’s pretty hard.”
Riley told reporters on a Thursday morning Zoom call that having film available from the Boilermakers’ first two games was helpful and that the coaching staff knows what to expect schematically.
“With that many new guys, you’re really trying to study the personnel and who they’re featuring and how these guys are playing, how they’re playing together,” Riley said. “This one’s unique. All the years, I’m trying to remember looking back and seeing, like, no returning starters on a side of the ball and this many new players.”
When Purdue has the ball
North Carolina transfer Ryan Browne was named the starting quarterback just before the Boilermakers’ season opener against Ball State. He’s completed 32 of 49 passes for 481 yards and four touchdowns with one interception and is spreading the ball to multiple receivers.
Arhmad Branch leads the receiving corps with 132 yards on five catches and is one of 12 players to record a reception this season. Michael Jackson III has been targeted the most with seven catches for 79 yards.
Offensive coordinator Josh Henson is in his first year guiding Purdue’s offense as well as serving as the tight ends coach after spending the past three seasons as USC’s offensive coordinator.
“You can drum up in your mind some advantages that Purdue would have of Josh knowing some of our personnel or having been in this offensive scheme,” Riley told reporters. “You could also drum up some experiences that we have as well because we’ve got a pretty solid knowledge of them offensively, too. It goes both ways.
“I think a game like this still at the end of the day is going to come down to how well the players on the field play and execute those schemes and their jobs in that moment.”
When USC has the ball
The coaching crossover doesn’t end with Henson. Odom was previously the head coach at UNLV, where he worked with Maiava. But, again, success comes down to execution.
Maiava has been thriving as a starter this season and has yet to turn the ball over while becoming the Big Ten’s leading passer with 353.5 passing yards per game and six touchdowns.
Ja’Kobi Lane’s athleticism and Makai Lemon’s toughness have created a complementary receiver pair that works well with Maiava’s skill set. There’s also depth in the rushing attack with Waymond Jordan, Eli Sanders and King Miller all capable of going for chunk plays.
“The whole secondary is new for Purdue, basically, and I don’t know if anybody can handle Ja’Kobi Lane and Makai Lemon,” said Nessler, who will be on the call for Saturday’s game. “Anybody on the Trojans’ schedule, I think they’re going to be a nightmare for anybody they play.”
USC (2-0) at PURDUE (2-0)
When: 12:30 p.m. Saturday
Where: Ross-Ade Stadium, West Lafayette, Indiana
TV/Radio: CBS/ESPN LA 710