PASADENA, Calif. — Midway through the third quarter of the 109th Rose Bowl, Utah quarterback Cameron Rising stepped back onto the hallowed turf, staring down a scenario in which he has thrived all season — his Utes trailing, needing their senior leader to respond and rally them to victory.
Twice against USC, Rising sparked comeback wins with his creative guile and guts, which is why Utah had returned to Pasadena for a second straight new year, and why the Trojans were sent to the Cotton Bowl instead of competing in the College Football Playoff.
Penn State freshman tailback Nick Singleton had just darted through the middle of the Utah defense for an 87-yard touchdown run to put the Nittany Lions up seven. On the ensuing drive, Rising, the Newbury Park product, scrambled nine yards to convert a third down, seemingly starting his latest emphatic answer.
But he didn't get up. Flashbacks from a year ago flooded the minds of the Utah faithful. In 2022, the Utes were tied with Ohio State when Rising took a hit to the head and missed the rest of the game. Monday, Rising's misfortune continued with what appeared to be a left knee injury. He needed help walking off the field.
Soon, Penn State quarterback Sean Clifford was finding speedster KeAndre Lambert-Smith for an 88-yard touchdown pass, the longest scoring connection in Rose Bowl history, and a game that appeared to be a budding classic at halftime was suddenly a rout with 21 straight Nittany Lions points.
No. 11 Penn State won its second Rose Bowl, its first since a 1995 win over Oregon, 35-21 and left little doubt who the better team was on this day, regardless of Rising's injury. No. 8 Utah became the first Pac-12 team to lose back-to-back Rose Bowls since USC in 1988 and 1989.
For Rising, who dreamed of winning a Rose Bowl as a kid growing up in Ventura County, this venerable stadium is now his personal house of pain.
Something seemed off — moody, almost — all afternoon in Pasadena. The gray skies. The chilly breeze. The clouds stationed over the San Gabriel Mountains, blocking the game's trademark sunset like stubborn sentinels.
Actually, it wasn't so different than the conditions Penn State lives with most of the year in central Pennsylvania. Right around the time Penn State took the game over, rain started to fall — the first rainfall during the "Granddaddy of Them All" since 1997, and, before that, the drought had lasted all the way back to 1955.
It really poured in the fourth quarter as Penn State thumped away to a 35-14 lead. Perhaps it was Mother Nature crying for the plight of Rising, who did not get to finish what he started for the second time in as many years.
In the end, it was another senior quarterback who had endured mounds of criticism during his time in Happy Valley who was serenaded with love from his fan base late in the fourth quarter.
Clifford enjoyed a dream ending to his college career, throwing for 279 yards and two touchdowns.
Singleton compiled 120 yards in just seven carries, providing what Nittany Lions fans can only hope was a thrilling glimpse into the future of James Franklin's program.
Rising will now have a decision to make about whether to use his final year of eligibility and make one more run at an elusive Rose Bowl trophy or declare for the 2023 NFL draft.
