Rivalry Stories

1939: It becomes a rivalry
The first matchup with national implications came in 1939. UCLA began fielding a team in 1919, but USC would not stoop to play the public school team until 1929, and dealt the Bruins defeats of 76-0 and 52-0, and then the teams didn't bother playing again for several years. In '39, though, both teams were undefeated and ranked in the Top 10. USC was able to bottle up UCLA star halfbacks Jackie Robinson and Kenny Washington to force a 0-0 tie -- but the Trojans and their 8-0-2 record were selected for the Rose Bowl over the Bruins and their 6-0-4 record. All the better to stoke a growing rivalry. After all, it was only the sixth time the teams had ever played, and UCLA had yet to win.

The series in a sentence
This from former UCLA coach Red Sanders: "It's not a matter of life and death ... it's more important than that."

Prank III : 500 pounds of manure
In 1958, UCLA students dumped 500 pounds of manure on Tommy Trojan. Because the 100 or so USC students surrounding Tommy disallowed a ground raid, several UCLA students rented a helicopter to finish the job.

The worst Bruin sin
Every year, as the UCLA Alumni Band strikes up "The Sons of Westwood" and flames playfully dance as they surround Tommy Trojan at the annual "Beat $C" bonfire, devilish grins spread across the faces of students gathered around the staked effigy - until Mark Dieffenbacher makes his entrance, causing heads to turn.
For three years, Dieffenbacher, a fourth-year pre-cognitive science student in 1996, has broken the unwritten UCLA law, done the forbidden, committed the worst Bruin sin - he has worn a USC T-shirt during "Beat $C" week.
How could a member of the blue and gold family do such a thing? It all began when Dieffenbacher was introduced to feminism while attending UCLA's Freshman Summer Program. "I took a Women's Studies class and became a feminist," he said. "My teaching assistant talked about a professor who would cross-dress to make a statement." Intrigued with the idea, Dieffenbacher said he then went on to cross-dress three times on campus.
One year, Dieffenbacher only dressed up three days out of "Beat $C" week, and, again, it was at the bonfire that he experienced the worst reactions. "A football player threw a 'Trojan' condom at me," he laughed. "It was wrapped up. That was considerate of him," he added shaking his head.

Classic Game
The 1967 game had absolutely everything imaginable: The top two Heisman Trophy candidates in UCLA's Gary Beban and USC's O.J. Simpson, the Rose Bowl on the line, and the national championship at stake. And then it lived up to the billing as "game of the century" as a tight, well-played game. Beban passed for 300 yards, but when he led the Bruins to a go-ahead touchdown and a 20-14 lead, USC blocked the extra point. And later in the fourth quarter, just as the Trojans seemed bottled up, there went "Juice," bolting for one of the most dramatic, sensational runs ever seen -- a 64-yard cutback run on which he showed every bit of his world-class speed. Beban won the Heisman, Simpson won it the following year.

Here's a disturbing trend
In 1996, USC's defeat left both teams without a winning record for the season (UCLA 5-6, USC 6-6) for the only time since 1958. And in 1999, it got even worse: Both teams entered the game with a losing record for the first time since WWII, and only the fourth time ever (1937, 1940, 1941).