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The Honolulu Advertiser
Updated at 2:11 p.m., Sunday, December 7, 2008

CFB: Penn State, USC to play in Rose Bowl

By JOHN NADEL
Associated Press

LOS ANGELES — Joe Paterno is coming to California for the holidays.

The sixth-ranked Nittany Lions will play in the Rose Bowl game on New Year's Day for just the third time, facing No. 5 Southern California.

The Trojans will be making their fourth straight appearance and record 34th overall in college football's oldest bowl game, known as the Grandaddy of Them All, an especially appropriate moniker this time around considering Paterno turns 82 in two weeks.

The teams met in 1923 in the ninth Rose Bowl, with USC beating Penn State 14-3, one of the Trojans' record 23 wins in the game. The Nittany Lions evened their Rose Bowl record 14 years ago under Paterno, beating Oregon 38-20.