On a muggy Sunday afternoon at the Meadowlands, a sellout crowd packed Giants Stadium to watch the 7th-ranked USC Trojans take on the 11th-ranked Penn State Nittany Lions in the second college football game of the 1996 season.
Despite breaking in 8 new starters on offense, Penn State manhandled USC from the outset, winning by a 24-7 margin that -- thanks to several inopportune Penn State turnovers - was a lot closer than the game actually was played. Sophmore running back Curtis Enis turned in one of the most dominant performances of the season, battering the Trojans defense for 241 yards (at the time the 4th-highest total in school history) and 3 touchdowns on 27 carries.
The win propelled Penn State to a #7-national ranking the following week.