ROSE BOWL: USC 41, Northwestern 32 : USC Had Its Hands Full With One ‘Cat

No matter how hard a hit he took, no matter how many USC defenders piled on him to stop him, Northwestern running back Darnell Autry bounced back to his feet each time with a resilience that suggested he was ready for more carries and more punishment.

He was asked 32 times to hurl himself into the teeth of a quick, physically imposing defensive line, perhaps the quickest the Wildcats had seen. Thirty-two times, Autry eagerly grabbed the ball, twisting and darting through narrow holes. When the holes weren’t there, he created them by willing himself forward, gaining 110 tough yards and scoring three touchdowns.

He never sagged, never once seemed daunted by knowing he carried with him the hopes of thousands of screaming fans who turned Pasadena into a purple palace Monday.

Not until the Wildcats’ wild ride to the Rose Bowl had ended with a 41-32 loss did Autry’s spirits deflate. As he emerged from the Northwestern locker room to meet reporters, his shoulders were slumped and his face was a mask of disappointment. A few feet away, the Wildcats’ equipment bags were piled up to be loaded onto a truck for the long, unhappy trip back to Evanston, Ill.

“It hurts to lose this last game,” said Autry, who set or tied 25 school records this season and finished fourth in Heisman Trophy voting. “We played a pretty good game. We just didn’t get a couple of breaks we needed at the end. We just couldn’t finish them off.”

Autry, a sophomore theater major, did his part toward writing a happy ending to Northwestern’s unlikely success story.

Autry, who gained a school-record 1,675 yards in leading the Wildcats to their first Rose Bowl trip since 1949, on Monday had his 13th consecutive 100-yard game and the 14th of his career. He also caught six passes for 38 yards and returned a kickoff 25 yards. His three touchdowns matched his season best, which he had accomplished against Minnesota and Penn State during Northwestern’s 10-1 run to the Big Ten championship.

When Autry carried the ball, the USC defense didn’t part as neatly as “the Red Sea” parted for the Wildcats during their visit to Universal Studios last week. On Northwestern’s first touchdown drive, Autry had to twist to get through the right side for a one-yard gain, dash around left end for another yard and grind his way off left guard for another yard before he squeezed through the right side for three yards and into the end zone.

His nine-yard run on Northwestern’s second touchdown must have seemed like a marathon in comparison.

His work on the third touchdown, which gave the Wildcats a 32-31 lead with 13:01 to play in the fourth quarter, was more typical of his powerful running. He carried the ball four times--once for a three-yard loss--before plowing into the right side of the end zone. He took a moment to enjoy it, standing with his hands on his hips, but he knew he couldn’t savor the feeling for long.

“We knew we didn’t have them. I thought we’d have to come back and score one more time,” he said. “It was good for us to fight back and take the lead, by no means did I sit back and say, ‘That’s it. I’m done.’

“We weren’t down when we were trailing. We knew we had to play the kind of ball we’re capable of playing. We’re a second-half team, and we were ready to pick it up in the second half, but USC is a great team. It was a great game. It hurts to lose, but I’m proud of our team. We didn’t just show up--we played hard.”

After a stunning season that won the Wildcats national acclaim, a whirlwind two-week visit to California that gave him the chance to meet actor Charlton Heston and the experience of playing in one of the most exciting Rose Bowl games in years, Autry will carry home with him more happy memories than he could list.

“There were so many different things I’ll take away from this game and this season,” he said. “I’ll remember every game, every play in every game and every guy on this team.

“There’s disappointment, but we’re proud of everything we’ve done this season. I couldn’t ask for a better group of guys. I’m proud of my teammates and proud of the coaches and I’m proud of everyone associated with Northwestern. I hope everybody is proud of themselves. I think we’ve established ourselves as a good program, and I look forward to next year, coming back.”