The contest, played on January 2 in keeping with the game's standard practice when New Year's Day falls on a Sunday, was televised on ESPN with a radio broadcast on ESPN Radio and XM Satellite Radio, which began at 1:30 p.m. (PST) with kickoff at 2:10 p.m. (PST). The Pasadena Tournament of Roses Association was the organizer of the game. The Rose Bowl Game was a contractual sell-out, with 64,500 tickets allocated to the participating teams and conferences. The remaining tickets were distributed to the Tournament of Roses members, sponsors, City of Pasadena residents, and the general public. Ticket prices were $150 and $210. The bowl game was preceded by the 2017 Rose Parade, the 128th annual Rose Parade which began at 8:00 a.m. (PST) on game day with a theme of "Echoes of Success."[7]
After the teams' arrival in Southern California, the teams participated in the traditional Lawry's Beef Bowl in Beverly Hills and the Disney Media Day at the Disneyland Resort in nearby Anaheim. The Rose Bowl Hall of Fame ceremony luncheon was held prior to the game at the Rose Bowl, where outstanding former players and participants were inducted into the hall. This year's honorees were Bobby Bell, from the University of Minnesota; Ricky Ervins, University of Southern California; Tommy Prothro, Oregon State University and UCLA; and Art Spander, award-winning sportswriter.[8]
The bands and cheerleaders from both schools participated in the pre-game Rose Parade on Colorado Boulevard in Pasadena along with the floats.
Teams
The teams playing in the Rose Bowl game were the highest ranking teams from the Pac-12 Conference and Big Ten Conference that were not selected to play in a College Football Playoff semifinal game. The teams were officially selected by the football committee of the Pasadena Tournament of Roses Association on Selection Sunday on December 4, 2016, based on the final rankings by the CFP committee.
The Trojans started the year with a dismal 1–3 record, but after a Week 4 loss at No. 24 Utah the Trojans reeled off an eight-game winning streak, including an upset win over No. 4 Washington to break them into the Top 25 where they remained since. USC was led by freshman quarterback Sam Darnold, 1,000-yard rusher Ronald Jones II, receivers JuJu Smith-Schuster, Darreus Rogers and Deontay Burnett, defensive end Porter Gustin, and all-purpose player Adoree Jackson.
They were coached by Clay Helton, who led them to a 9–3 season (after going 5–4 in 9 games as interim head coach the season before). The team wore its white jerseys and used the east bench during the game.
The Nittany Lions started the season off 2–2 after losses to Pitt and No. 4 Michigan but finished the regular season on a 9–game winning streak, including a pivotal 4th-quarter comeback victory over #2 Ohio State that led to Penn State receiving a Top-25 national ranking for the first time since 2011. Penn State added a Big Ten Championship with a comeback win over #6 Wisconsin to close out the season. The Nittany Lions were led by sophomore duo quarterback Trace McSorley and 1,000+ yard rusher Saquon Barkley and junior wide receiver Chris Godwin.
They came into the game 11–2 (8–1 Big Ten), a big improvement from the last two seasons under head coach James Franklin (finished 7–6 both seasons). The team wore its dark jerseys and used the west bench on game day.
Other
The Nittany Lions and Trojans had previously played nine times, with USC leading the series 5–4, and had played twice in the Rose Bowl in (1923 and 2009) with USC winning both games. The 2017 match was the highest scoring game in the bowl's history, with a total of 101 points, breaking the record set five years earlier at the 2012 Rose Bowl game. This record was broken in the 2018 Rose Bowl game with 102 points scored by both Oklahoma and Georgia.[9][10]
In this game, a number of new Rose Bowl records were set.[11][12]
USC quarterback Sam Darnold tied or set a number of individual records:
Five touchdown passes tied a record for most scores, and set a new record for most passing touchdowns.
36 points became a new individual record (five touchdowns and a two-point conversion).
473 yards in total offense became a new individual record.
Penn State quarterback Trace McSorley also tied Rose Bowl records:
Four touchdown passes and a running touchdown also tied the record for most scores. In the third quarter, first Darnold, then McSorley tied the existing Rose Bowl record for touchdown passes.
Three interceptions tied a record for most passes intercepted, shared with nine other Rose Bowl quarterbacks.
USC receiver Deontay Burnett tied an individual record for most touchdown receptions with three.
USC kicker Matt Boermeester tied a Rose Bowl record with three field goals made (including the game-winner as time expired).
The Trojans and Nittany Lions combined for 101 points. The previous record of 83 was set by Oregon and Wisconsin in the Ducks’ 45–38 victory in the 2012 Rose Bowl. This record would later be broken by Oklahoma and Georgia, who scored a combined 102 points in the 2018 Rose Bowl.
Penn State’s 49 points became a new record for a losing team.
Penn State’s 28 points in the third quarter are the most scored by a team in a single quarter.
USC set a Rose Bowl comeback record by overcoming a 14-point deficit in the fourth quarter.
Hall of Fame ceremony, Rose Bowl, January 1, 2017, 12:00 noon
Rose Bowl Game Public Tailgate, January 2, 2017
Post-game
Ratings
The 2017 Rose Bowl drew more than 16 million viewers, making it the most-watched non-semifinal New Year’s Six game ever, and one of the most viewed college football games in history. Viewership was up 17% from the prior year’s 2016 Rose Bowl game between Stanford and Iowa. The telecast peaked at 19,656,000 viewers in the final minutes of the fourth quarter, which included USC’s game-winning field goal. Locally, Philadelphia (16.7) set a market record for the game, while in Pittsburgh (17.0) and Los Angeles (14.9) made it was the second highest-rated bowl game ever on ESPN.
Figures do not include the 300,000 who streamed coverage on WatchESPN or other International streaming websites. If these figures were added to the final rating it would have been near the 19 million viewership range. Some countries who streamed the game on a national tv broadcast include Canada (1.3 million), France (200,000) and Australia (98,000).[14]
