College Football Old School Game of the Week: USC Wins Rose Bowl to Spoil Northwestern's Dream Season

USC wide receiver Keyshawn Johnson caught 12 passes for 212 yards and score one touchdown in USC's win over Northwestern.

The biggest story of the 1995 college football season was the Northwestern Wildcats who after 24 straight losing seasons would win the Big 10 conference title and earn a trip to play in the Rose Bowl for the first time since 1949.

The Wildcats' opponent in the Rose Bowl were the USC Trojans, who were seen as a supporting player in what would be in final game of this Cinderella story that many college football fans hoped would end with a Northwestern victory in the "Grandaddy of Them All".

 But USC had other ideas as the Trojans looked to turn the Wildcats back into the pumpkin as the two teams faced off on the first day of 1996.

Northwestern was the sentimental favorite as the Wildcats were ranked #3 with a 10-1 record under head coach Gary Barnett, who promised to "take the purple to Pasadena" upon his arrival before the 1992 season.

In the 1995 season opener, the Wildcats would upset 28-point favorite Notre Dame 17-15 in South Bend, thanks to a 33-carry, 160-yard performance by running back Darnell Autry as Northwestern defeated the Irish for the first time since 1962.

The Wildcats seemed to fall back to reality in their next game, a 30-28 loss to Miami of Ohio, only to bounce back and win the remaining nine games of the regular season which included wins over Michigan, Wisconsin, Penn State, and Iowa as Northwestern would finish the regular season with a 10-1 record but needed a 31-23 by Michigan over Ohio State in the final week of the regular season to clinch the Big 10 title and fulfill Barnett's promise on sending the purple to Pasadena.

Autry would lead the way of offense as he ran for 1,675 yards and scored 14 touchdowns while linebacker Pat Fitzgerald who averaged 13 tackles per game until he broke his leg in the Wildcats' win over Iowa in the penultimate game of the regular season.

Fitzgerald would have to watch the Rose Bowl from the sidelines as the Wildcats looked to cap off their magical season with a win over the Trojans who making their return to the Rose Bowl after a six-year absence.

  USC came into the game ranked #17 in the country with a 8-2-1 record under head coach John Robinson, who was the third year of his second tenure as the Trojans head coach following a seven-year run from 1976 to 1982 where he complied a 67-14-2 record as he led USC to three Rose Bowl victories and a share of the 1978 national championship.

The Trojans started off the 1995 season with a 6-0 record until they lost to Notre Dame 38-10 which was followed by a 21-21 tie to the Washington Huskies the following week as the Huskies and the Trojans would finish with identical conference records at 6-1-1 but it would be USC who the bid to the Rose Bowl as the Trojans finished with a better overall record(8-2-1 to Washington' 7-3-1).

USC's best player during the 1995 season was All-American wide receiver Keyshawn Johnson, who caught 90 passes for 1,218 yards and scored six touchdowns during the regular season despite the fact that the Trojans used a two-quarterback system throughout the season as Brad Otton and Kyle Wacholtz would go back-and-forth as the team's starting quarterback.

No matter who the quarterback was, if the Trojans were going to knock off the Wildcats they would need a big day from Johnson like he did in the Cotton Bowl one year earlier as he caught eight passes for 222 yards and scored three touchdowns in USC's 55-14 beatdown of the Texas Tech Red Raiders.

USC got the ball to start the game with Otton as the quarterback as he would complete his first seven passes of the game as the Trojans would drive 83 yards in 12 plays with the drive ending with an one-yard touchdown run by running back LaVale Woods to give USC a 7-0 lead.

The Wildcats would begin their first drive of the game at their 32-yard-line as Northwestern would use the passing game to move down the field as quarterback Steve Schnur connected with wide receiver D'Wayne Bates three times for 56 yards on the drive that culminated with a three-yard touchdown run by Autry to help tie the game at seven midway through the first quarter.

Following an exchange of punts, the Trojans got the ball back at their 22-yard-line as Johnson would make his presence felt on this drive as he caught three passes in a row totaling 46 yards to help set up Otton's 21-yard touchdown pass to running back Terry Barnum to put USC back on top 14-7 with 13:05 to go in the second quarter.

The Wildcats would get great field position for their ensuing possession as they took over at their 48-yard-line as two runs by Autry for 21 yards help move Northwestern to the USC 15-yard-line when they called on Brian Gowins to attempt a 32-yard field goal.

However, Gowins' kick would sail wide left of the uprights to keep the score at 14-7 as the Trojans would take over possession at their 20-yard-line.

USC would once again rely on Johnson to move down the field as he caught a 12-yard pass from Otton to convert on a 3rd & 4 at the Trojans' 26-yard-line then later in the drive caught a 22-yard pass to give USC a 1st down at the Northwestern 31-yard-line.

From there, the Trojans would advance to the Northwestern 12-yard-line before calling on Adam Abrams to attempt a 30-yard field goal, which he made to increase USC's lead to 17-7 with 3:29 remaining in the second quarter.

Trying to cut into the Trojans' lead, the Wildcats had the ball at their 30-yard-line when Schnur completed a screen pass to wide receiver Brian Musso who managed to get around the 50-yard-line until he lost the football after a hit by USC defensive back Sammy Knight, though replays indicated that Musso's knee may have been down before losing the football.

Cornerback Dayton McCutcheon would scoop up the loose football and run it back for a 53-yard touchdown to extend the Trojans' lead to 24-7 with 2:56 to go before halftime as the Wildcats were faced with their largest deficit of the season.

Northwestern running back Darnell Autry would carry the ball 32 times as he ran for 110 yards and scored three touchdowns.

After a Northwestern three-and-out, the Trojans got the ball back at their 27-yard-line as they seem content to go into the locker room with a 24-7 halftime lead when disaster struck as Woods fumbled the football after a hit by Wildcats linebacker Tim Scharf as defensive back Hudhaifa Ismaeli made the recovery to give Northwestern the ball at the USC 34-yard-line with 12 seconds to go in the half.

Schnur would complete a 22-yard pass to Bates to set up Gowins' 29-yard field goal as time expired in the first half with the Wildcats trailing 24-10 but set to get the ball to start the second half.

Starting at their 43-yard-line, the Wildcats would drive 46 yards in 10 plays as a 17-yard pass from Schnur to Musso would be the biggest play of the drive that ended with another Gowins field goal, this one from 28 yards out to cut the USC lead to 24-13.

The Trojans were set to get the ball when the Wildcats surprised them with an onside kick that was recovered by Northwestern defensive back Josh Barnes to give the ball back to Schnur and the Northwestern offense as they would begin their next drive at their 47-yard-line.

Two runs by Autry for 14 yards followed by a 16-yard pass from Schnur to tight end Darren Drexler put Northwestern at the USC 23-yard-line as two more running plays for five yards set up a 3rd & 5 where a USC holding penalty would give the Wildcats a 1st & goal at the nine-yard-line.

That is when Autry took a handoff from Schnur and ran it around the right side for the nine-yard touchdown that with the extra point trimmed the Trojans' lead to 24-19 with 8:17 left in the third quarter as the Wildcats attempted a two-point conversion that was unsuccessful.

With the momentum on Northwestern's side, the Trojans took over at their 21-yard-line as Otton started the drive with a 5-yard completion to tight end Tyler Cashman, then found Johnson for 19 yards and a 1st down at the Trojans' 45-yard-line.

Two plays later, the Trojans were faced with a 3rd & 11 when Otton hit Johnson at Northwestern 45-yard-line, on a post across the middle of the field as the wide receiver outran the Wildcats defense for a 56-yard touchdown to push USC's lead back to double digits to 31-19.

The Wildcats would answer quickly on the first play of their ensuing possession from their 26-yard-line as Schnur threw a bomb for Bates, who was able to make the catch despite being covered by two USC defensive backs, for 46 yards that got 15 yards added to it because of a roughing the passer penalty on the Trojans to give Northwestern a 1st down at the USC 13-yard-line.

Three runs by Autry for 12 yards put the Wildcats at the Trojans' one-yard-line where Schnur would sneak it for the touchdown to cut the USC lead back down to five points at 31-26 with 2:59 to play in the third quarter.

Following an USC three-and-out, the Wildcats got the ball back at their 43-yard-line as Schnur would complete passes of 11 yards to fullback Mike McGrew and 23 yards to Musso on a 10-play, 57-yard drive that was capped off with a two-yard touchdown run by Autry to give Northwestern its first lead of the game at 32-31 with 13:01 to go in the game after another unsuccessful two-point conversion attempt.

The Trojans would get the ball back at their 33-yard-line as they would move down the field behind the right arm of Otton as he completed passes of seven-yards to Cashman on a 3rd & 4, followed by a 13-yard pass to Chris Miller, and then a 11-yarder to Johnson on a 3rd & 10 to move USC into field goal range where Abrams would come to kick a 46-yard field goal to give USC a 34-32 lead with a little over nine minutes to go.

The Wildcats would begin their ensuing possession at their 23-yard-line as Schnur completed passes of 10 yards to Bates and 16 yards to wide receiver Dave Beasley to move Northwestern to the USC 44-yard-line when Schnur overthrown his intended receiver, fullback Matt Hertl, and was intercepted by Trojans safety Jesse Davis.

Davis would return the interception 41 yards to the Northwestern 31-yard-line as Otton would complete a five-yard pass to Barnum on a 3rd & 5 then find Johnson for six yards on a 3rd & 4 to help set up a two-yard touchdown run by Washington to push the USC lead to 41-32 with 2:55 to go in the game.

The Trojans inexplicably went with a squib kick on the ensuing kickoff, giving Northwestern the ball at their 42-yard-line as the Wildcats needed two scores to end their magical season with a Rose Bowl win.

After two incomplete passes to start the drive, Schnur would scramble for 12 yards to pick up a Northwestern 1st down at the USC 46-yard as Autry would catch two passes for 11 yards and convert on a 4th & 1 with a six-yard run to move the Wildcats to the USC 26-yard-line when it appeared that were going to cut the deficit to two points as Schnur threw a 26-yard touchdown pass to Bates.

However, a holding penalty on tackle Brian Kardos would nullify the touchdown and push the Wildcats back to the USC 42-yard-line as a 12-yard pass to Musso would put the Cats back in field goal range as Gowins would come on to attempt a 49-yard field goal to keep Northwestern alive.

But this is where the clock officially struck midnight for the Wildcats as Gowins' kick bounced off the left upright as USC would take over and run out the clock as the Trojans would come away with their 20th Rose Bowl victory in school history with the 41-32 triumph.

USC quarterback Kyle Otton would play the whole game as he completed 29 of 44 passes for 391 yards and threw two touchdowns.

The win over Northwestern vaulted the Trojans to just outside the top 10 as they finished ranked #11 in the coaches poll and #12 in the AP poll with a 9-2-1 record while Northwestern would fall to #7 in the coaches poll and #8 in the AP poll with a 10-2 record.

Schnur, Autry, a healthy Fitzgerald and Barnett would all return the following season to prove 1995 was no fluke was the Wildcats would a share of the Big 10 title with Ohio State as Northwestern would finish with a 9-3 record.

As for the Trojans, their win in the 1996 Rose Bowl would be one of the final great moments for Robinson as head coach as the team finished with back-to-back six-win seasons as Robinson would be fired after the 1997 season.

They would not return to the Rose Bowl until at the end of the 2003 season as where they would defeat Michigan to win a share of the national championship in the first of four Rose Bowl victories in a span of six years.