PASADENA, Calif. — Southern Cal was one play away from college football history Wednesday night in the Rose Bowl.

Unfortunately for the Trojans, that one play was in the hands of Texas quarterback Vince Young, the best player on the field who never won a Heisman Trophy.

USC had two Heisman winners in running back Reggie Bush and quarterback Matt Leinart. It had 34 consecutive victories and back-to-back national championships.

But it didn't have an answer for Vince Young.

Young scored on a fourth-down, 8-yard run with 19 seconds to play as the second-ranked Longhorns upset the Trojans 41-38 and won the national championship.

The game will be remembered as much for what the Trojans didn't do as for what the Longhorns accomplished.

No other team in college history had won three consecutive national titles. And no other team came so close.

Young's fourth-down run wasn't the only close call. His history-preventing run wouldn't have happened if USC running back LenDale White could have nudged the football a few inches farther on another fourth-down run.

White, who scored three touchdowns, couldn't make a first down on fourth-and-two at the Texas 45-yard line with 2:09 to play.

The obvious question: Why didn't USC punt the ball?

The obvious answer: That's not how USC won 34 games in a row.

The Trojans won by playing to their strengths. And this season, their strength was on offense.

"If we made a first down, the game is over," USC coach Pete Carroll said. "And if you had seen what they did on the series before (a 69-yard touchdown drive that cut the lead to five points), it didn't really matter where they started. It was a night where we needed to do it on offense."

Nothing was wrong with USC's offense other than a sluggish start, which enabled Texas to forge an early 16-7 lead. That was nothing but a warmup for the second-half highlight show to come.

Bush scored on a dazzling 26-yard run, capped by a four-yard leap across the goal line. Leinart completed 16 of 19 passes for 268 yards in the second half. White rushed for 83 of his 124 yards and scored two of his three touchdowns in the second half.

All of those stars. All of that offense. And it still wasn't enough to overcome Young.

"He's so fast and big," Carroll said. "He probably made us miss a dozen tackles. Plus, he threw the ball well."

Young completed 30 of 40 passes for 267 yards and ran 19 times for 200 yards. Those staggering numbers surpassed last year's Rose Bowl performance in which he ran 21 times for 194 yards and four touchdowns, and completed 16 of 28 passes for 180 yards as Texas defeated Michigan 38-37 in last year's Rose Bowl.

As great as Young has been in Rose Bowls, he didn't need any help. But the officials gave it to him Wednesday night.

Young's left knee was clearly on the ground when he pitched the ball to Selvin Young, who scored on a 12-yard, second-quarter touchdown run. As bad as the call was, the decision not to review it was even worse.

One bad call didn't tarnish a spectacular game that lived up to its massive pregame hype.

"This was a night for champions," Carroll said. "Two teams went out and battled the whole time.

"Texas did a wonderful job all night long. We had to keep scoring to outscore them. And we weren't able to.

"If you have to hand it over and step aside, that's a heckuva team to do it with."

Texas not only has the championship. It has the winning streak, too.

The Longhorns have won 20 consecutive games.

They didn't just beat the Trojans. They beat them at their own game.

Eight times in USC's 34-game winning streak, it overcame a halftime deficit. It did that three times in its first five games this season. And it did it again against Texas.

But that was only the second-best comeback of this Rose Bowl.

"These kids were behind at Ohio State, behind Oklahoma State," Texas coach Mack Brown said. "They just have a willingness about them that makes you proud to be called their coach.

"Even when we were down by 12 points, I expected us to win."

Sports editor John Adams may be reached at 865-342-6284 or adamsj@knews.com.