It's no intended slight to Utah State, a solid enough football program, but relative to the rest of USC's daunting 2024 schedule this is as close as the Trojans get to a tune-up game.

Or it should be, at least.

After opening with a 27-20 win over a ranked LSU team, and with a showdown on the road against a ranked Michigan team awaiting after the bye next week, the No. 13-ranked Trojans will look to tighten some screws and build further confidence and momentum in their home opener Saturday night in the Coliseum.

The main intrigue from a matchup standpoint is who will start at quarterback for Utah State.

Spencer Petras sprained his ankle early in the Aggies' 36-14 win over FCS foe Robert Morris last week, giving way to Utah transfer Bryson Barnes, who completed 11 of 21 passes for 198 yards, 2 touchdowns and 1 interception and also rushed for 88 yards (with a 63-yard touchdown jaunt).

USC and its fans know Barnes all too well, as he filled in for Utah last season and passed for 235 yards, 3 TDs and 1 INT while rushing for 57 yards and a score.

Petras is officially listed as questionable and day-to-day, leaving uncertainty as to who will start for Utah State on Saturday night.

"You have to prepare for both, and when you look at their tape last year their quarterbacks that played kind of had that mobility that [Barnes] has, so we have to be prepared for the quarterback run game, we have to be prepared for him to extend plays," USC defensive coordinator D'Anton Lynn said. "And then if their starter plays, we have to be prepared for what he brings, so we're practicing for everybody."

Said defensive end Jamil Muhammad: "They're very electric, they spread you out, they make you very honest to the quarterback run. Even though they play two quarterbacks, the guy that's been playing because the starter's hurt, I think he's the more mobile guy, he came from Utah. When he's in, they make you respect the quarterback run. ... You can't take them lightly. They have a very powerful offense."

Let's take a closer look at the Aggies and the matchup ...

Who | Utah State at No. 13 USC

Where | LA Memorial Coliseum

When | 8 p.m. PT Saturday

TV | Big Ten Network with Guy Haberman, Yogi Roth and Rhett Lewis

Radio | ESPN LA 710AM with Pete Arbogast, Shaun Cody, Cody Kessler, Su’a Cravens, Jordan Moore, Jason Schwartz (includes 2-hour postgame show)

Series history | USC is 6-0 all-time vs. Utah State, with the most recent meeting a 45-7 win in 2016

Betting line | USC -29 (over/under set at 63.5)

Head coach: Nate Dreiling, 1st season as interim head coach (1-0); Dreiling was hired this year to be Utah State's defensive coordinator and was elevated to interim head coach when Blake Anderson was fired over the summer. Dreiling was previously the defensive coordinator at New Mexico State.

Located: Logan, Utah

Conference: Mountain West

Record: 1-0 ... Utah State beat Robert Morris, 36-14

2023 finish: 6-7 (4-4 Mountain West)

Notable: Utah State is 6-66 all-time against Associated Press-ranked teams, but has won five of its last 17 meetings, including its 46-13 win at No. 19 San Diego State in the 2021 Mountain West Championship game, which was its last win against an AP top-25 team.

We noted the quarterback situation, which is the biggest variable entering the matchup.

Spencer Petras is a sixth-year QB who spent the past five years at Iowa, passing for 1,725 yards, 5 TDs and 5 INTs last season. He had passed for 145 yards, 1 TD and 2 INTs last week before leaving with injury. He is not a threat to run -- at all.

Bryson Barnes spent three seasons at Utah before transferring across the state. Last season, filling in for Cam Rising, he passed for 1,572 yards, 12 TDs and 11 INTs and rushed for 265 yards and 3 TDs.

He gained notoriety for his background as a pig farmer.

Petras wasn't the only big injury in the Aggies' opener, though, as they also lost running back Robert Briggs to a fractured left leg. Briggs rushed for 420 yards and 2 TDs last season and had racked up 88 yards on 9 carries last week before the injury. But Utah State still has senior Rahsul Faison, who rushed for 736 yards and 5 TDs last season, and rushed for 78 yards on 12 carries last weekend.

At wide receiver, Jalen Royals was first-team All-Mountain West last season with 71 catches for 1,080 yards and 15 TDs. He had 5 catches for 77 yards and a TD in the opener, while Kyrese White had 3 catches for 131 yards and 2 TDs.

The Aggies return five starters on their offensive line in senior LT Cole Motes (6-foot-5, 295 pounds), fifth-year senior LG Wyatt Bowles (6-5, 305), senior C Falepule Alo (6-1, 295), junior right guard Aloali'i Maui (6-1, 305) and redshirt sophomore RT Teague Anderson (6-5, 305). The unit did not allow any sacks or quarterback hurries last week.

Utah State returns six starters on defense in cornerbacks Avante Dickerson (6 PBUs), who was at one point a USC recruiting target, and Jaiden Francois (57 tackles, 3.5 TFL, 1 INT), safeties Simeon Harris (59 tackles, 2.5 TFL, 1 INT, 4 PBUs) and Ike Larsen (103 tackles, 4.5 TFL, 4 INTs and 6 PBUs), defensive end Cian Slone (2 sacks, 6.5 TFL) and defensive tackle Seni Tuiaki.

The Aggies were led last week by two transfer additions. Linebacker Jon Ross Maye, who was an All-American at Division II program Lenoir-Rhyne, finished with a team-leading 10 tackles last week. And safety Jordan Vincent, a New Mexico State transfer, also tallied a team-leading 10 tackles.