‘Very difficult day’ for Carroll

Throughout the long history of their rivalry, USC and UCLA played each other 35 times with the Rose Bowl on the line for one or both teams.

The spoils went to the victors in each of those matchups.

Not this season.

On Sunday, a day after UCLA’s stunning 13-9 upset, USC officially accepted a bid to the Rose Bowl, the first time the outcome of the game between the Trojans and the Bruins earned the loser a New Year’s Day date in Pasadena.

USC’s defeat knocked the Trojans out of an expected invitation to the Bowl Championship Series title game against top-ranked Ohio State. USC will play similarly disappointed Michigan, which lost its chance for a title-game rematch against the Buckeyes when Harris and coaches’ poll voters jumped Florida past the Wolverines to No. 2.

USC Coach Pete Carroll described it as “a classic matchup, about as good as the Rose Bowl could hope for.”

Before the UCLA game, Carroll had hoped for a happier weekend.

He described Sunday as “a very difficult day” that followed an evening at his office going over film of the UCLA game.

“I couldn’t wait to get at it and see what happened,” he said.

Carroll said the Trojans could not handle the quickness of the Bruins’ defensive front, which constantly pressured quarterback John David Booty and stifled the Trojans’ running game. He also said the Trojans made blocking mistakes, failed to win short-yardage situations and “had a lot of lousy drive attempts.”

“It was an interesting game in that it wasn’t like other games over the years that we lost,” he said. “We didn’t kick the ball around and the other team, I don’t think, had to play the game of their life to beat us. I thought they did a real good job.”

Carroll praised Booty for his statistical performance (23 for 39 for 274 yards with one interception) and dismissed calls to replace the fourth-year junior with redshirt freshman Mark Sanchez.

“People are not paying attention to the game,” Carroll said. “John had a statistical game that was on track from the games he had. There was a more effective rush on that day and he still got it done.”

Carroll acknowledged that comebacks in both of USC’s losses this season ended on tipped passes. Asked if there was anything that could be done about that Carroll said, “I don’t know. No response.”

USC is 5-2 against Michigan in the Rose Bowl, including a 28-14 victory in 2004 that earned USC the Associated Press national title for the 2003 season.

“I don’t think we’re disappointed to be playing in the Rose Bowl,” Booty said in the locker room after the game. “I think we’re disappointed that we lost.”

Offensive tackle Kyle Williams said missing the BCS championship game was “obviously a bummer.... But I don’t want to think that we’re settling for the Rose Bowl because that’s not the case.”

Carroll will meet with his players on Tuesday. The Trojans are tentatively scheduled to begin practice again on Dec. 14 in preparation for a return trip to the Rose Bowl, where they have lost in their last two games at the venerable stadium.

“We need to stop that from happening,” he said. “We need to end this streak.”

gary.klein@latimes.com