Rose Bowl still has its bloom

USC and Penn State would have preferred to play in the Bowl Championship Series title game next week in Florida. However, now that the game is finally here, neither seems to regard the 95th Rose Bowl game as a consolation prize. Times staff writers Gary Klein and Mike Hiserman look at some of the key issues and matchups when the Trojans and Nittany Lions play each other in the Rose Bowl for the first time since 1923:

Beyond comparison

Comparing scores with common opponents is one way to try to pick a winner, and when it comes to today's matchup, each team has OSU -- two of them.

Both USC and Penn State played Oregon State and Ohio State.

Penn State routed Oregon State, 45-14, in Happy Valley. USC lost to the Beavers three weeks later, 27-21, at Corvallis.

And Penn State and USC both took great pleasure in defeating the Buckeyes from The Ohio State University.

USC did not get Ohio State's best shot in a 35-3 mid-September victory at the Coliseum. The Buckeyes had not yet settled on freshman Terrelle Pryor as the quarterback and junior running back Chris "Beanie" Wells did not play.

Those players were in the lineup on Oct. 25, and Penn State scored 10 points in the final seven minutes to win, 13-6, at Columbus, Ohio.

Wells gained only 55 yards in 22 carries as the Nittany Lions held the Buckeyes to their fewest points at home since 1982.

Somehow, that all was factored into a calculation that led to USC's being a 9 1/2 -point favorite.

Conference composites

The relative weakness of the Pacific 10 and Big Ten conferences was one reason experts said one-loss USC and Penn State teams were held back in the polls.

Well, don't look now, but Pac-10 teams are 4-0 in bowl games. Arizona defeated Brigham Young in the Las Vegas Bowl, California beat Miami in the Emerald Bowl, Oregon rallied past Oklahoma State in the Holiday Bowl, and Oregon State shut out Pittsburgh in the Sun Bowl.

"We know that our most difficult games every year are in our conference," USC Coach Pete Carroll told reporters Wednesday. "This isn't like something you just say; it's the truth . . . our greatest challenges for the last eight years have been in the Pac-10."

The Big Ten is 0-3. Wisconsin was routed by Florida State in the Champs Sports Bowl, Northwestern lost in overtime to Missouri in the Alamo Bowl and Minnesota lost by three touchdowns to Kansas in the Insight Bowl.