Penn State, Southern Cal Kick Off

Joe Paterno calls the Kickoff Classic a “good thing” for Penn State. John Robinson says today’s game is “kind of a strange deal” for Southern California.

Whatever it is, a trend has emerged in the 14th year of the game: The winner thinks national title, the loser can forget about it.

In two of the past three seasons, the Kickoff Classic winner swept through the season undefeated and won a national championship. And last year, Ohio State came close, going 11-0 before faltering.

In 1993, Florida State beat Kansas 41-0, and the Seminoles went on to give coach Bobby Bowden his first national crown. The next year, it was Nebraska beating West Virginia 31-0 and the mighty Cornhuskers presented coach Tom Osborne with his first title.

The Buckeyes beat Boston College 38-6 in the ‘95 Kickoff Classic, won their next 10 games but were upset by Michigan in the season-finale. In all, each of the game’s 13 winners ended the season in the Top 25, with eight finishing in the Top 10.