Dec. 31, 2008
LOS ANGELES; - More than 20,000 Penn State fans gave the Nittany Lions a loud and enthusiastic send-off on the eve of their New Year's Day clash with Southern California in the 95th Rose Bowl presented by Citi.
The largest crowd to attend a Penn State pep rally since the 1995 Rose Bowl crowded onto the football field at Beverly Hills High School in Century City. The entire squad attended, as did the Penn State Blue Band, the cheerleaders and Nittany Lion. The crowd also heard from Coach Joe Paterno, University President Graham Spanier, Roger Williams, Executive Director of the Penn State Alumni Association, and Joe Battista, Executive Director of the Nittany Lion Club.
"I can't tell you how moved I am by this crowd, said Paterno, who is in his 43rd season as head coach and is the all-time leader in victories among major college coaches with a 383-126-3 (74.8) record. "I can't express to you how much this squad has meant to me. Tomorrow is not going to be easy...but, baby, baby we love that challenge! And we need you to be there and be loud!" as the huge crowd roared its approval.
All Penn State fans are encouraged to wear white to the Rose Bowl, as Big Ten Champion Penn State (11-1) and Pac-10 Champion Southern California (11-1) clash in "The Granddaddy of Them All." The contest will be played at the Rose Bowl Stadium (88,500) in Pasadena, Calif. The game will kick at 2:10 p.m. PT/5:10 p.m. ET and air on ESPN on ABC, ESPN Radio and the Penn State Sports Network.
ESPN's College Gameday Built by the Home Depot will originate from the Rose Bowl Stadium at 9:00 a.m. ET on Thursday. A conversation between Paterno and ESPN's Chris Fowler will air during the program.
Penn State is ranked No. 6 in the Associated Press and USA Today Coaches polls. Southern California is No. 4 in the Coaches poll and No. 5 in the AP poll.
The BCS No. 8 Nittany Lions and No. 5 Trojans will be meeting for the ninth time, with the series tied, 4-4. The first meeting came in the 1923 Rose Bowl, Penn State's first of 41 bowl games as of Thursday. The teams have met six times since 1990, with both teams winning two games on their home field and both winning once in the Kickoff Classic. The last meeting resulted in a 29-5 USC win in the 2000 Kickoff Classic in Giants Stadium.
Penn State and USC will be playing in a post-season game for the third time, the second in the Rose Bowl. The Trojans defeated the Lions, 14-3, in the 1923 Rose Bowl, the first played in the present facility. The other post-season clash came when the No. 7 Nittany Lions defeated the No. 8 Trojans, 26-10, in the Fiesta Bowl on Jan. 1, 1982.
The Nittany Lions won their second Big Ten title in the past four years and came within two points of delivering their eighth unbeaten regular season under Paterno, losing at Iowa, 24-23, on Nov. 8 on a last second field goal. Penn State has won 42 of its last 52 games, dating to a win over Indiana in November 2004. The Nittany Lions' 2008 senior class has posted a 40-10 record, tied for No. 7 in the nation since the start of the 2005 season.
Penn State and USC had two common opponents this season in Ohio State and Oregon State. The Nittany Lions defeated the Buckeyes, 13-6, in Columbus on Oct. 25 and beat the Beavers, 45-14, on Sept. 6 in State College. The Trojans beat the Buckeyes, 35-3, on Sept. 13 in The Coliseum and lost at Oregon State, 27-21 on Sept. 25. Since the loss in Corvallis, USC has won nine straight, out-scoring the opposition, 342-56, culminating with a 28-7 win over UCLA in the Rose Bowl stadium on Saturday.
The Nittany Lions will be making their 35th post-season trip under Paterno, who is the all-time leader in bowl wins (23-10-1) and appearances. Paterno, one of just three active coaches to be inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame, is taking a team to a 23rd New Year's Bowl game, having compiled a 16-6 mark.
Penn State will be playing in its third Rose Bowl. In addition to the 1923 contest with USC, the Nittany Lions defeated Oregon, 38-20, in the 1995 Rose Bowl to become the first Big Ten Conference team to post a 12-0 record. USC will be playing in its 33rd Rose Bowl and fourth consecutive.
Penn State and USC rank among the nation's best in all-time victories, bowl visits and success. The Nittany Lions became the sixth school to capture 800 victories with their 49-18 win over Michigan State on Nov. 22. Penn State has an all-time record of 800-348-42 in its 122nd season. The Trojans are No. 10 in all-time wins with a 765-303-54 record in their 116th season.
The Nittany Lions are No. 3 in the nation with 26 post-season victories, No. 8 with 40 bowl appearances and second nationally in bowl winning percentage (67.5, 26-12-2) among schools with at least 10 bowl victories. USC is No. 2 in bowl wins (30), fourth in bowl appearances (46) and third in post-season winning percentage (65.2, 30-16-0) among schools with at least 10 bowl wins.
The Nittany Lions have won three consecutive bowl games, improving to 9-2 in post-season contests since beginning Big Ten play in 1993. Penn State will be playing a team located in the state of the bowl game for the third time in the last four years. Paterno-coached teams are 6-2-1 in bowl games against teams from the state of the game, winning their last three.
Penn State has an all-time record of 23-11 vs. current members of the Pac-10, having played Southern California (eight) the most of any Pac-10 team. The Nittany Lions are 18-9 in regular season games against Pac-10 opponents and 5-2 in bowl games. Since starting Big Ten play in 1993, Penn State owns a 6-1 mark vs. Pac-10 squads, having played USC (3-1), Oregon (1-0), Arizona (1-0) and Oregon State (1-0).
The Nittany Lions are 5-2 all-time vs. Pac-10 teams in bowl games: Arizona State (1-0), Oregon (2-0), USC (1-1), Stanford (0-1) and Washington (1-0). Paterno is 4-1 vs. the conference in the post-season.
Paterno has an impressive 69.1 winning percentage in bowl games, second-best all-time among coaches with at least 12 bowl appearances. Georgia Tech's Bobby Dodd is first at 69.2 (9-4). Paterno is the only coach to win the Rose, Fiesta, Orange, Sugar and Cotton Bowls. He has taken Penn State to 13 different post-season contests, winning in 11 locales, more than anyone in college football history.
The Nittany Lions lead the Big Ten in six of the eight primary offensive and defensive categories, including all four defensive categories. Penn State leads the conference in total (452.2 ypg, 15th in nation) and scoring offense (40.2 ppg, 11th) and is second in rushing offense (211.6 ypg, 15th). The Trojans are ranked in the Top 20 nationally in rushing (206.0 ypg, 17th), total (453.1 ypg, 14th) and scoring offense (37.5 ppg, 14th).
Two of the nation's premier defenses will be on the field in Pasadena. The Nittany Lion defense is ranked in the Top 10 nationally in rushing (8th, 95.9 ypg), scoring (4th, 12.4 ppg), pass efficiency (6th, 97.3 rating) and total defense (5th, 263.9 ypg). Penn State has held six opponents to points or less this season. USC leads the nation in total (206.1 ypg), scoring (7.8 ppg), and pass efficiency defense (81.4 rating) and is No. 5 in rushing defense (83.3 ypg).
The Tournament of Roses, Big Ten Conference and Pac-10 Conference entered into its bowl partnership agreement in 1946. Modified in 1960, it is the oldest college football agreement between two major conferences in the nation. Since its inception, the two conferences have met 61 times in the Rose Bowl Game.
http://www.ncaa.com/sports/m-footbl/recaps/123108aad.html
Penn State vs. Southern California Series (4-4)
| Jan. 1, 1923 | USC 14, PSU 3 1923 Rose Bowl |
| Jan, 1, 1982 | PSU 26, USC 10 1982 Fiesta Bowl |
| Sept. 15, 1990 | at USC 19, PSU 14 |
| Sept. 14, 1991 | at USC 21, PSU 10 |
| Sept. 11, 1993 | at PSU 21, USC 20 |
| Sept. 10, 1994 | at PSU 38, USC 14 |
| Aug. 25, 1996 | PSU 24, USC 7 1996 Kickoff Classic |
| Aug. 27, 2000 | USC 29, PSU 5 2000 Kickoff Classic |
Information on the Rose Bowl game and bowl events can be found on the bowl's website at http://www.tournamentofroses.com.