2009 Rose Bowl was a fitting end for that season's Trojan team

There are teams that instantly stand out in college football. When discussing top depth charts in the history of the sport, USC's 2008-2009 roster has to be one of them. In total, 11 players from Pete Carroll's development would go on to be drafted later that year, including three first-rounders.

Ending the season on the high note of the 2009 Rose Bowl showed how great of a program the Trojans had built and was a fitting crowning moment after an 11-1 season. Playing at 'The Granddaddy of Them All' in Pasadena, California, the Pac-10 champions took on the Big Ten Penn State team.

The buildup focused a lot on the Joe Paterno vs. Pete Carroll aspect. For the Trojans, it was a chance to showcase that the lone resume blemish against Oregon State should have been more seriously considered to be overlooked. After all, a two-loss LSU team and an earlier defeated-by-USC Ohio State side ended up playing for the BCS National Championship that year.

Regardless, for coach Carroll it was about competing one final time as a collective and demonstrating how good they could be against some high-quality, top competition.

While the Nittany Lions also wanted to prove their ability to travel across the country and perform on the national stage, in truth, the final score was very much deceiving to how the game played out. The defense handled business early on and took PSU out of the game from the beginning.

Both offenses ended up producing a touchdown in the first quarter, but that didn't come for Penn State until the closing seconds of the period. The ensuing two-quarter shutout by the Trojan defensive unit showed what that side of the ball had been able to do to opponents all year long.

Just the linebacking corps alone of Kaluka Maiava, Brian Cushing, Rey Maualuga, and Clay Matthews was enough of a disruptive force that didn't allow the Nittany Lions to find any success until the game was well out of hand.

Maiava was named the defensive MVP of the game, while Matthews consistently got into the backfield and was repeatedly introducing himself to Daryll Clark. Between how they limited the run and were constantly pressuring Clark, it was a rough outing for the PSU offense.

The Trojans, meanwhile, had a nice, balanced approach. It was the last game that would be called by offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian for USC, but his relationship and trust in Mark Sanchez showed itself in an impressive display.

Well-rounded and executed game from USC

This balance resulted in 35 passes and 35 runs. Sanchez threw for over 400 yards and four TDs without an interception. Penn State outgained the Pac-10 team on the ground, but Stafon Johnson's carries were enough, and that element of the offense did help in converting first downs at critical times.

Not to be outdone, Sanchez ran one in for a score to reclaim the lead. He then followed it up with a perfectly placed ball between the coverage of two defenders for a Ronald Johnson TD. C.J. Gable capitalized off the turnover with a 20-yard catch and run on the dump-off.

As mentioned, Penn State managed to claw back into the game. The bootleg deep pass, while rolling to his right by Sanchez, found Johnson for an impressive 45-yard connection and the WR's second score of the day. The arm strength of the QB was on full display throughout the Rose Bowl, as the first TD by the man under center to Damian Williams ended up being something of a tone-setting pass. The offensive MVP went to Sanchez.

All in all, it was a complete performance from both sides of the ball. While it ended up becoming a closer 14-point, 38-24 victory, everyone saw how good USC was at its best, and the second quarter in particular, against a good BIG side, showed complete domination from the Men of Troy.