Pop goes the upset: Illini fall to dominant USC in Rose Bowl

PASADENA, Calif. -- The world witnessed the most lopsided Rose Bowl verdict since the last time Illinois made a pilgrimage to this college football mecca.

But the guys in the Illini locker room -- only one of whom was alive when Illinois lost to UCLA by 36 points in 1984 -- diagnosed a Bowl Championship Series game that was there for the taking.

Or, at least, for a much better final take than USC's 49-17 runaway Tuesday afternoon before 93,923 in the valley.

The nation's preseason No. 1 team rolled up a Rose Bowl-record 633 total yards to win the Granddaddy of Them All for the third time in five years.

No. 13 Illinois also committed 4 turnovers -- 2 of them in the red zone -- surrendered a season-high 5 sacks and missed a 29-yard field goal to end the nation's biggest turnaround season on a down note.

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"This whole football season, we had a lot of balls go our way," said Illinois junior linebacker Brit Miller. "Football's about opportunities. Life's about opportunities. We missed one today. We missed a couple."

During a crucial eight-minute stretch of the second half, sixth-ranked USC took advantage of 3 third-quarter turnovers to transform a tenuous 21-10 lead into a 42-10 blowout.

"They do have a good defense," said senior wide receiver Jacob Willis, "but I think we made more mistakes ourselves."

Willis' mistake loomed the largest as it stalled Illinois' rally just as junior running back Rashard Mendenhall started to make things interesting.

After a dreadful first half that found the Illini down 21-3 at the break, Mendenhall sprinted 79 yards on a trap to pull Illinois within 21-10.

Mendenhall's fourth 75-yard-plus play of his career breathed remarkable life into the Illini sideline.

So much so, many players started doing the "Soulja Boy" dance prior to the kickoff to mock USC's similar first-quarter moves.

When the Trojans started bobbing and dancing on their sideline, too, it seemed like the battle finally was joined.

"The first half, we were deer in the headlights," said freshman receiver Arrelious Benn. "We came out in the second half, we knew we could play with them guys. It was just another game. Just Illinois playing USC."

Illinois swiftly regained possession and used Mendenhall's remarkable 55-yard broken-field run on a safety-valve pass to get inside USC's 25.

Juice Williams found Willis across the middle at the 6-yard line, but linebacker Kaluka Maiava popped the ball free from behind as Willis turned toward the goal line.

Linebacker Brian Cushing recovered in the end zone for a touchback.

"College football is all about momentum," Mendenhall said. "A play like (the 79-yard run) switches the momentum in your direction.

"Guys were jumping around the sideline for the kickoff and everybody's hyped and we were right back in the game."

Then came Willis' fumble.

"A play like that, the momentum goes right back to them," Mendenhall said.

The Trojans (11-2) promptly marched 80 yards for a back-breaking score. One play before John David Booty's 2-yard touchdown pass to Fred Davis that made it 28-10, cornerback Miami Thomas deflected a Booty pass to diving linebacker J Leman.

But, like so many ricochet plays during the game, Illinois didn't benefit.

Thomas was flagged for interference -- he reacted incredulously when he saw the flag -- and USC took advantage for the score.

The Trojans added touchdowns on three of their next four possessions to score the most points in a Rose Bowl since Michigan whipped USC 49-0 in 1948.

Booty, the Offensive Player of the Game, finished his college career with 255 yards and 3 scores. Backup tailbacks Joe McKnight and Stafon Johnson both eclipsed the 100-yard marks as USC ran for 344 yards.

"They kept us off-balance," said Illinois co-defensive coordinator Curt Mallory. "They made plays when they had to, and when the ball got rolling they just kept going."

Illinois (9-4) finished with 7 more wins than last season and its first bowl game since New Year's Day 2002.

Benn, who eased a little frustration with a 56-yard touchdown catch-and-run with 4:28 to go, peered into a rosy crystal ball after the game.

"We're going to see them again," Benn said. "We're going to be a program that's a front-runner. Next year's going to be a big year for us. Every year's going to be a big year for us.

"The sky's the limit for us. That Cinderella stuff is out the window right now. We're the new Illinois."

Yet with a Rose Bowl result too similar to the old Illinois.