The USC Trojans will play the Northwestern Wildcats in 2024 in the first year of the new-look Big Ten Conference. USC leads the all-time series against the Wildcats with a 5-0 record. USC last played the Cats in the 1996 Rose Bowl. They won 41-32.
Paul Myerberg of USA TODAY Sports has more on this particular head-to-head series:
“Underdog Northwestern was perhaps the underdog story of the 1990s when they made an utterly unexpected run to the 1996 Rose Bowl, though the Wildcats were unable to keep USC and wide receiver Keyshawn Johnson under wraps in the nine-point loss. Northwestern has been outscored 115-20 in the other four meetings.”
The 1995 Northwestern team was truly Cinderella. The Wildcats were able to bust through the Ohio State-Michigan axis of influence in the Big Ten. Both OSU and Michigan had down years, and that was enough for Northwestern, coached by Gary Barnett (who later coached Colorado to the 2001 Big 12 championship), to pounce on a very rare opportunity. Northwestern reached the Rose Bowl for the first time in nearly 50 years.
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