Of note is that this year's Rose Bowl features SEC champion Georgia and Big 12 champion Oklahoma, a matchup which traditionally occurs in the Sugar Bowl, which is being used as the other CFP semifinal game for this year.
Prior to kickoff, the Trojans led the all-time series 13-9-1; the most recent game was on September 12, 2009, where the Trojans defeated the Buckeyes by a score of 18–15, scoring with 1:05 remaining in the game to go ahead to stay.
USC had won the last 7 games in the series, with Ohio State's last win coming in the 1974 Rose Bowl.
This is the eighth time that the schools met in a bowl game.
[1] With the victory, the all-time series between the schools now stands at 13-10-1 in favor of USC.