USC Visits Texas Tomorrow, Let's Revisit The Greatest Game Ever Played: The 2006 Rose Bowl
It’s been 13 years since Vince Young and the Texas Longhorns captivated the nation in a 41-38 victory over Matt Leinart and Reggie Bush’s USC Trojans. The game, which many call the greatest championship of all time, lived up to the enormous hype surrounding it. USC entered Pasadena on a 34-game winning streak, seeking it’s 3rd straight National Championship. Texas came in with its own 19-game winning streak, having won the Rose Bowl the previous year versus Michigan. The teams’ 53-game combined win streak was an NCAA record for teams playing each other. There was no shortage of talent on the field either. USC’s Matt Leinart and Reggie Bush had won back-to-back Heisman trophies, but the most electric star turned out to be Texas QB Vince Young. Let’s use tomorrow’s ho-hum matchup of USC and Texas as an excuse to take a trip down memory lane and revisit the greatest game ever played.
Cast of Characters:
Matt Leinhart (USC QB)
Vince Young (Texas QB)
Reggie Bush (USC RB)
Brian Orakpo (Texas LB)
LenDale White (USC RB)
Jamal Charles (Texas RB)
Dwayne Jarrett (USC WR)
Limas Sweed (Texas WR)
Steve Smith (USC WR)
Ray Maualuga (USC LB)
Michael Huff (Texas Strong Safety)
Brian Cushing (USC LB)
Pregame:
Lance Armstrong and Roger Clemens were patrolling the Texas sidelines, while Snoop Dog was by the USC bench. Kobe was in the house, too. But it was Matthew McConaughey and Will Ferrell that stole the show.
Corso, Herbie, and Mark May made their selections.
The hype couldn’t be any greater. It was time for the game.
1st Quarter:
USC took the opening kickoff and went 3 and out vs Texas’ defense that came into the championship only giving up 14 points per game. A special teams blunder on the punt return gave the Trojans the ball in great field position, leading to a 4-yard touchdown run from LenDale White. 7-0 Trojans.
2nd Quarter:
On the 2nd play of the quarter, Heisman winner* Reggie Bush took a pass 35 yards before unsuccessfully lateraling it to a teammate on the Texas 18 yard line. Texas capitalized off the turnover, driving the field and coming away with 3 points on a 46 yard field goal from David Pino. 7-3 Trojans.
USC took their next possession deep into Texas territory as well, only to once again turn it over. Free safety Michael Griffin interception Leinhart in the red zone, and the Longhorns made the most of it. Vince Young capped off a long scoring drive by running the ball 10 yards and then lateraling it to running back Selvin Young to finish off the final 12 into the end zone. Pino missed the extra point. 9-7 Longhorns.
Texas’ defense held strong on the next possession, getting them the ball back around midfield for their next drive. Sophomore running back Ramonce Taylor ran in a score from 30 yards out. 16-7 Longhorns.
Leinart orchestrateda a drive to end the 1st half to get the Trojans within field goal range. Mario Denalo put a 43 yarder through the uprights just before half. 16-10 Longhorns.
3rd Quarter:
The Trojan defense came out strong after the break, forcing a Texas punt to begin the half. Leinhart completed three passes to Dwayne Jarrett on the ensuing drive before LenDale White took in his 2nd TD of the day, this one from 3 yards out. 17-16 Trojans.
Just two minutes later, Young ran in a touchdown from the 12 yard line to regain the lead for Texas. 23-17 Longhorns.
The following USC drive went 9 plays for 73 yards, but it took a 12 yard LenDale White rush on 4th down for the Trojans to score. The 4th down gamble paid off, White punched in his 3rd TD of the day, and USC took back the lead. 24-23 Trojans.
4th Quarter
Vince Young ended the previous quarter with a 45 yard run that set up a chip shot from the 14 yard line for kicker David Pino. Pino missed his 2nd kick of the night, this one would have taken the lead for the Longhorns. The Trojans took the ball and went 80 yards in the next 3:36, and Reggie Bush scored his only TD of the night on a 26 yard rush, flipping into the end zone. 31-24 Trojans.
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The following drive could have spelled disaster for Texas, as Jamal Charles appeared to fumble after a catch. The replay official deemed the pass incomplete, and the Longhorns kept possession. A long drive was held up by a Vince Young fumble and recovery on 3rd down, and Texas settled for a 34 yard field goal. 31-26 Trojans.
USC responded quickly, with Leinart leading the charge down field with a 33 yard completion to David Kirtman and a 15 yard roughing the passer penalty. Leinart found Jarrett from 22 yards and he stretched it over the goal line to give USC their largest lead of the game with 6:42 remaining. 38-26 Trojans.
Down two scores, Young accounted for all 69 yards on the next drive to score in just 2 minutes and 39 seconds. His 17 yard touchdown run brought Texas to within 5 with just under 4 minutes remaining. 38-33 Trojans.
USC came out with a chance to milk some clock, but after only one first down, they found themselves facing a 4th-and-2 near midfield. In the most pivotal coaching moment of the game, USC Coach Pete Carroll decided to let his offense, who averaged 582.2 yards and 50.0 points per game on the year, try to ice the game on 4th down at the Texas 45 yard line.
The Texas defense held the line, and the Longhorns got the ball back with 2:09 to play.
On their final drive of the game, Texas converted a 3rd-and-12 by way of a USC facemask penalty. Young then rushed for 7 yards and passed for 26, getting the Longhorns down to the USC 14 yard line. With 26 seconds remaining, down by 5, Texas faced a 4th-and-5 from the 12 yard line, setting up one of the most iconic plays in college football history.
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Young ran in the 2 point conversion, as well. 41-38 Longhorns.
With no timeouts and 9 seconds left, Leinart got the ball to the Texas 43 yard line, but ran out of time.
Final Score: 41-38 Texas
Post Game:
The 2006 Rose Bowl featured 4 players drafted in the Top 10 of that year’s NFL Draft. Reggie Bush (2nd overall, New Orleans), Vince Young (3rd overall, Tennessee), Michael Huff (7th overall, Oakland), and Matt Leinart (10th overall, Arizona) all went Top 10, while Taitusi Lutui, Fred Matua, LenDale White, David Kirtman, Winston Justice, Cedric Griffin, David Thomas, Frostee Rucker, Dominique Byrd, Darnell Bing, Jonathan Scott, LaJuan Ramsey, and Rodrique Wright were drafted in the next six rounds.
The championship matchup was named “Best Game” in any sport at the 2006 ESPYS. Sports Illustrated and Time Magazine named the game the “Best Moment” of the year in sports.
*USC later vacated their 12 wins in the 2006 season due to the Reggie Bush scandal. Wildly enough, the USC media guide also mentioned they vacated their loss to Texas.
I guess Texas is still looking for their 1st ever win over USC. Good luck tomorrow, Longhorns!