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Top 5 greatest Rose Bowl games in college football history

By Quinn Douglas

PASADENA, CA - JANUARY 01: A general view of the 2018 College Football Playoff Semifinal Game between the Oklahoma Sooners and Georgia Bulldogs at the Rose Bowl Game presented by Northwestern Mutual at the Rose Bowl on January 1, 2018 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
PASADENA, CA - JANUARY 01: A general view of the 2018 College Football Playoff Semifinal Game between the Oklahoma Sooners and Georgia Bulldogs at the Rose Bowl Game presented by Northwestern Mutual at the Rose Bowl on January 1, 2018 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Tournament of Roses – Pool/Getty Images)
(Photo by Tournament of Roses – Pool/Getty Images) /

2. 1963 Rose Bowl: No. 1 USC 42, No. 2 Wisconsin 37

The 1963 Rose Bowl became the first matchup between a No. 1 versus No. 2 team in College Football bowl history. USC, the champions of the AAWU (Athletic Association of Western Universities), came in with an unblemished 11-0 record under coach John McKay and the play of quarterback Pete Beathard. The Wisconsin Badgers entered the game with an 8-1 record and outright champions of the Big Ten, led by quarterback Ron Vander Kelen and tight end Pat Richter.

This game was a record-setting day in the history of the Rose Bowl as 11 records were set, mostly passing records. USC appeared to have a comfortable lead in the fourth quarter, until Vander Kelen led the Badgers on a furious comeback, scoring 23 unanswered points, but still falling short of the Trojans by a final score of 42-37.

This game showed that having No. 1 and No. 2 play each other in a bowl game can bring exciting results, and the following year, the Cotton Bowl hosted the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the country.

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