Jan. 5, 2026, 6:49 a.m. PT

Sunday’s date was January 4, 2026. Why, you might ask, is that significant? It marked the 20th anniversary of January 4, 2006—the date of the greatest game in college football history, and perhaps USC’s most infamous loss of all time.

Of course, I am talking about the 2006 Rose Bowl between USC and Texas. With it having been 20 years since that classic showdown for the national championship in Pasadena, I decided to take a look back at what is widely considered to be the greatest college football game of all time.

(Warning: Even two decades later, this game is still a sensitive subject for many USC fans. Read on at your own risk.)

The lead-up

USC finished its 2005 regular season 12-0. The Trojans were the back-to-back defending national champions, on a 34-game winning streak, and one victory away from a historic third consecutive national title—something that had not been accomplished since the 1930s.

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Texas, meanwhile, was also 12-0, and in search of its first national championship since 1970. The Trojans were ranked No. 1 in the BCS, while the Longhorns were No. 2.

The game featured the top three finishers in the Heisman Trophy voting. USC running back Reggie Bush won the award, while Texas quarterback Vince Young was the runner-up and USC quarterback Matt Leinart—the 2004 winner—finished third in the voting.

The game

The game lived up to the hype and then some, with the two teams battling back and forth throughout. After USC scored first, Texas dominated the second quarter and took a 16-10 lead into halftime. The Trojans came out swinging in the second half and led by two scores in the fourth quarter, before Texas came back and set up a dramatic finish.

The infamous lateral

Early in the second quarter, Bush recorded a 35-yard reception from Leinart that set the Trojans—who were leading 7-0 at the time—up in the red zone. Prior to being tackled, Bush attempted to lateral the ball to a teammate. However, the fumble was instead recovered by a Texas defender, giving the Longhorns the ball and flipping momentum in the game.

His knee was down

Later on in the second quarter, there was another infamous lateral. Young ran a quarterback run, and, prior to being tackled, pitched the ball to his running back, who carried it in for a touchdown. According to replay, Young’s knee was clearly down before he got the ball out. However, the play was not reviewed, and the touchdown counted.

A massive coaching blunder

Late in the fourth quarter, USC—leading 38-33—went for it on fourth down, needing just two yards to effectively seal the game. However, head coach Pete Carroll and offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin (anyone know what he has been up to of late?) controversially decided not to have Bush—the best running back in the country—on the field on fourth down. Fellow running back LenDale White was stopped short of the line to gain, and Texas took over on downs.

Vince Young scores

Of course, the climax of the game occurred on the following Texas possession. Facing a 4th and 5 from the USC eight-yard line, Young ran in for the go-ahead score, forever etching his name in USC infamy.

One final chance

After Young’s touchdown, USC got the ball back with 19 seconds left, trailing 41-38. However, Carroll had used the Trojans’ final timeout prior to Texas’s two-point conversion attempt, which proved to be costly. Leinart quickly drove USC into Texas territory, but with no timeouts remaining, the clock ran out on the Trojans, cementing a painful loss and ending their shot at a three-peat.

The aftermath

Despite the loss, Carroll and USC did not go away. The Trojans’ won the Pac-10 and the Rose Bowl in each of the next three seasons. In each of those years, however, the Trojans came up one regular season loss short of playing for a national championship.

Since Carroll’s departure for the Seattle Seahawks following the 2009 season, USC has not come anywhere close to another title. Until the Trojans finally reach the top of the college football mountain once again, the heartbreaking Rose Bowl loss to Texas and coming up one play short of history will continue to haunt USC fans.