Steve Clements

36 DAYS UNTIL KICKOFF — OPPONENT #36: The USC Trojans! We’re cruising through the complete lineup of all 137 Texas foes on the gridiron, and today we land on the Trojans! The USC Trojans have met the Longhorns seven times since 1955, and the all-time series currently sits at USC leading 5-2. It’s a series full of big-stage drama, early dominance by the Trojans, and one absolute all-time classic that every Longhorn fan still rewatches on repeat. The early meetings in the 1950s and 1960s went USC’s way, including a 44-20 win in 1956. Fast-forward decades later and the series produced pure magic on the biggest stage of all: the 2006 Rose Bowl for the National Championship. On January 4, 2006, Vince Young put on a legendary performance for the ages, leading Texas to a thrilling 41-38 victory over the heavily favored, undefeated Trojans. Young’s game-winning scramble on fourth-and-5 with under a minute left sealed the fourth national title in program history and remains one of the greatest moments in college football. The teams met again in recent years, with Texas picking up another solid win in 2018 (37-14). The Trojans have historically had the edge in the series, but that one magical night in Pasadena will forever belong to the Burnt Orange. I hear Vince wanted USC to score after this so he could come back out and win again.