A narrow victory over the UCLA Bruins has the Stanford Cardinal headed to the Rose Bowl for the 13th time in school history. The UCLA Bruins and the Stanford Cardinal slugged it out on Friday night for the Pac-12 Championship.
The Cardinal pulled ahead on a late field goal and held off a final Bruin drive to win, 27-24. Kevin Hogan went 16-for-22 for 155 yards and rushed for another 47 while Ed Reynolds had a key interception of Brett Hundley in the second quarter that seemed to derail UCLA’s momentum. The Cardinal defense had trouble stopping Johnathan Franklin, who rumbled for 194 yards, but they were able to force the Bruins into a long field goal try on their final drive. Ka’Imi Fairbairn’s kick went wide, sending Stanford to their first Rose Bowl since the 1999 season.
Stanford’s history in the Rose Bowl has been one of mixed results. 1999’s edition of the game was a 17-9 loss to Wisconsin, but the two trips prior to that (1970 and 1971) were both wins. If Wisconsin beats Nebraska for the Big Ten Championship, the 2013 Rose Bowl would be a rematch.
The Cardinal was part of the very first Rose Bowl, losing 49-0 to Michigan on Jan. 1, 1902. That game was played in front of approximately 8,000 fans in Pasadena’s Tournament Park, a far cry from the nearly 100,000 fans who will attend the 2013 Rose Bowl.
Check out the full story for a complete list of Stanford Rose Bowls: http://sbn.to/Tt0IjY