Fight On: All Eyes are on Jayden Maiava.

Written By: Daunte Lee Jones

College Football, Film, & MMA Contributor

Jayden Maiava played quarterback for Kaimuki High School in Honolulu, Hawaii.

Jayden Maiava photographed with family after a game.

Jayden Maiava under the bright lights of the Coliseum.

Jayden Maiava’s parents knew of their son’s desire to play football when at the young age of six years old he would declare to his father that one day he would be an NFL player. With a goal so massive many could fold under the pressure but for Maiava who grew up in Pālolo, Hawaii inside a household of over 20 extended family members the future quarterback would receive support from both his family and the entire Pālolo community, where he would grow into the person, he is today.

With the neighborhood in his heart, Maiava would move to Nevada to begin his football journey at Sierra Vista High School. He would then move back to Hawaii to attend Kaimuki High School before going back to Nevada when Kaimuki’s season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In Nevada for his senior season he would play for Liberty High School, where in the Nevada state title game he would face a devastating loss against Bishop Gorman High School.

Out of high school, as a three-star recruit Maiava received many offers from schools like Tennessee and Auburn but would reject them all to stay in Nevada and play for UNLV. The Pālolo native would redshirt his first college football season before being announced as the backup for his second.

But, when starting quarterback Doug Brumfield was knocked out of a game against Vanderbilt, Maiava seized the opportunity to lead UNLV to a comeback 40-37 win against the Commodores. Maiava would keep the job for the rest of the season and earn the titles of Mountain West Freshman of the Year and all-conference second team quarterback.

Jayden Maiava in 2023 started at Quarterback as a redshirt freshman.

After seeing Maiava’s massive potential, many questioned if the quarterback would stay with UNLV for the following season or move up to a bigger program. Jayden would make the choice to enter the transfer portal and play for Georgia before flipping to become a USC Trojan due to the opportunity to develop under head coach Lincoln Riley. Back to being a backup, Maiava would once again wait for his opportunity to come.

So, after Miller Moss’ struggles brought USC to a 4-5 record, Maiava would be named the starter against Nebraska and lead the Trojans to a win while also becoming the first Polynesian quarterback to start in USC history. He would carry this momentum into the Las Vegas bowl and beat the Texas A&M Aggies in a 35-31 comeback win.

With the full support of Lincoln Riley, Maiava’s next season would see him lead the Big Ten conference in passing yards with 3711 as well as 24 touchdowns. This season would push him to become a semifinalist for the Davey O'Brien Award as well as appear in the Alamo Bowl, though he would lose against TCU.

Jayden had the opportunity to announce for the 2026 NFL draft where in a weak quarterback class his stock could have raised exponentially but instead will return to USC and look to lead his team to the College Football Playoffs. With Jayden Maiava’s passion for football and his constant improvement soon we will see him reach his childhood dream and become an NFL player.

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