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USC Tops Penn State With Last-Second FG In Historic Rose Bowl

PASADENA, Calif. (AP) — Matt Boermeester kicked a 46-yard field goal as time expired, and No. 9 Southern California rallied from a 14-point deficit in the fourth quarter for a spectacular 52-49 victory over No. 5 Penn State on Monday night in the highest-scoring Rose Bowl ever played.

USC Wins A Rose Bowl For The Ages
Place kicker Matt Boermeester #39 of the USC Trojans makes a game-winning 46-yard field goal in the fourth quarter to defeat the Penn State Nittany Lions 52-49 in the 2017 Rose Bowl on Jan. 2, 2017 in Pasadena, California. (Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)

Freshman Sam Darnold passed for 453 yards and five touchdowns while leading a jaw-dropping comeback for the Trojans (10-3), who won their ninth consecutive game and won their first Rose Bowl since 2009.

"It was a whole team effort," Darnold said. "That's the way it's been all year. We never gave up."

The Trojans were almost finished when they trailed 49-35 with nine minutes to play, but Darnold and the Trojans had something extra in one of the most entertaining chapters in the 103-game history of the Granddaddy of Them All.

PHOTOS: USC Wins A Rose Bowl For The Ages

Deontay Burnett, who had three TD catches, caught a tying 27-yard scoring pass from Darnold with 1:20 left to cap an 80-yard drive in 38 seconds with no timeouts available.

Leon McQuay III then intercepted a long pass by Trace McSorley and returned it 32 yards to the Penn State 33 with 27 seconds left to set up Boermeester, who missed two earlier field goals.

The junior confidently drilled the Rose Bowl winner, and he sprinted away to celebrate amid pandemonium in the packed stadium.

"It's beautiful," McQuay said. "This is a special group of guys. Oh man, this is the time to step up. This is the time to make plays."

McSorley passed for 254 yards and threw two of his four touchdown passes to Chris Godwin for the Nittany Lions (11-3), whose nine-game winning streak ended in heartbreaking fashion.

Saquon Barkley rushed for 194 yards and two TDs for the Nittany Lions (12-2), who followed up their 21-point comeback in the Big Ten title game with another ferocious rally.

With one jaw-dropping play after another from two talent-laden offenses, the teams obliterated the combined Rose Bowl scoring record in the third quarter, surpassing Oregon's 45-38 victory over Wisconsin in the 2012 game.

The Nittany Lions' offensive stars put together a highlight reel for the ages during a 28-point third quarter. After trailing 27-21 at the break, Penn State scored three touchdowns on its first three snaps of the second half: a stunning 72-yard run by Barkley, a jaw-dropping bobbled 79-yard catch by Godwin and a 3-yard TD run by McSorley after an interception return.

(© Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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