Who: USC (5-5, 3-5 Big Ten) at UCLA (4-6, 3-5 Big Ten)

When: 7:35 p.m. PT

Where: Rose Bowl | Pasadena, Calif.

TV: NBC

Last meeting: 38-20 UCLA (Nov. 18, 2023)

All-time series: USC leads 50-34-7 (not including USC victories in 2004 and 2005 vacated due to NCAA violations)

It's time to discard the team records.

The only game crosstown rivals UCLA and USC will hear about around Southern California for the next year is Saturday night's showdown for the Victory Bell at the Rose Bowl.

The Bruins, looking to defend the bell after last season's 38-20 victory, will be fighting recent history. The home team hasn't won the game since 2019.

UCLA, though, has won two of the last three and the teams have split the past 12 meetings.

The Bruins will be motivated to secure a victory for head coach DeShaun Foster, who made it clear this week what it means to lead his alma mater for the first time in the series. Foster, though, is thinking about the seniors who will be getting one last on-field taste of the rivalry.

"I want to just send them off the right way and then, you know, kind of break the streak of home teams not winning this game," Foster said.

"This is just a game that when you talk to people, this is the only game that they want to ask you about — especially when you’re done playing and they ask you about the USC-UCLA game."

There are bowl implications riding on the contest, too.

The Trojans need one victory over the final two games to secure a bowl bid in an otherwise disappointing season that started with dreams of playing in the 12-team College Football Playoff.

The Bruins, sitting at four wins and looking to flip the script after a 1-5 start to the campaign, need a victory to keep their own bowl-eligible dreams alive heading into next week’s regular-season finale against Fresno State.

Here are five things to watch:

The emotions of the game will always be a key topic of discussion in any rivalry.

Earlier this week, we detailed the Bruins' inability to avoid costly penalties throughout the season.

It could very well be the difference between keeping the bell blue or giving it a fresh coat of red paint.

Bruins quarterback Ethan Garbers might have some flashbacks of being on the practice field with last season's team.

Now on the other side, looking to pick Garbers off in an actual game, will be Bruins-turned-Trojans defensive backs John Humphrey and Kamari Ramsey.

It was Ramsey who was among the crushing transfers at the end of last year’s regular season, taking his excellent open-field tackling prowess with him and forcing the Bruins to browse through the transfer portal for Bryan Addison (Oregon), Ramon Henderson (Notre Dame), Kaylin Moore (California) and K.J. Wallace (Georgia Tech).

Garbers will see several similar looks, too, with former defensive coordinator D'Anton Lynn, who spent just one season in Westwood, drawing up the scheme after USC offered him double his salary after the end of the regular season.

But the fifth-year senior is on the lookout for a trick or two, as well.

"Coach Lynn over there has done a great job, he did a great job when he was here," Garbers said. "I remember tendencies and all that. I'm sure he's gonna change some stuff up and have a few nuances like every defense does every week. But the principles are still the same, you know, the pressure looks are kind of similar. But, you know, he's gonna change it up and throw some stuff we've never seen at us."

Added Foster: "I know in this game, you’re not going to do your normal stuff."

On the Trojans’ offensive side of the ball, wide receiver Kyle Ford will be back at the Rose Bowl after spending one season at UCLA as a USC transfer before ping-ponging his way back.

Ford told reporters that he never felt quite comfortable and grew frustrated during his one season in Westwood, even while being on the winning side of last year’s outcome.

“I told someone, like, right when the whistle blew at the end of the last game, this was the only thing on my mind,” said Ford, who didn’t officially re-enter the transfer until March.

“I mean, we (UCLA) won so I guess that was cool, but at the same time, like, that was a year for me that was tough because in just that game I had so many mixed emotions coming back (to the Coliseum) because of the way that year was going. It made no sense that year. So, I don’t know, I just try to flush all of last year — regardless of how good I thought I played, regardless of the stats. I just tried to flush last year because it was so frustrating. That’s what I’m trying to take into this week, is use that frustration to do something good this week.

“I was more frustrated with my own team more than USC at that time. So, that’s why I’ve said this game has been on my mind longer than anything. It’s been on my mind since the mid of last season, so I’m excited for sure.”

It’s been pretty clear this season that when Garbers doesn’t force throws, especially under heavy pressure, the Bruins are a different team.

During the 1-5 start, the fifth-year senior threw nine interceptions to just four touchdowns and struggled with fumbles.

Since then, he’s tossed 10 touchdowns to just two interceptions over the past four games.

However, Garbers was sacked a career-worst six times and attempted a career-high 44 passes in last week’s 31-19 loss at Washington.

Last season, Garbers completed 18 of 31 pass attempts for 155 yards and three touchdowns without an interception in the win over USC.

Left tackle Niki Prongos, who was injured two weeks ago in the home win over Iowa, remained limited to strength and conditioning work throughout the week.

After losing backup Jaylan Jeffers in the following week's loss at Washington and with season-opening starter Reuben Unije still unavailable, the Bruins would turn to a fourth different starter in Yutaka Mahe if Prongos is unable to play.

While Foster said that Prongos is "going in the right direction," the official update Wednesday was that he "still might not be there."

Foster expressed confidence in Mahe, who made the first collegiate appearance of his career against the Huskies.

Mahe played 58 snaps in the contest.

"(Mahe) did a good job last week," Foster said. "He might have had a couple false starts, but that was his first game ever playing. It's a next-man mentality. We're not gonna make any excuses about who's in there or if they haven't played or if they're a walk-on. We prepare everybody to get ready to get in the game, and I'm just thankful that I have the type of players that actually take the coaching and like it and prepare to play — no matter if they're fourth on the depth chart or not."

The recruiting component is equally important.

After initially estimating about 300 recruits being on the "low end," Foster checked with his recruiting staff Wednesday and confirmed it was on the very low end.

"That's 700 recruits signed up. I just got the exact number," Foster said while circling back to the media.

Some notable names obtained by Bruin Blitz reveal an impressive expected gathering, with at least 18 players ranked among the Rivals250 in classes ranging from 2025 to 2027 — including eight in the top 100.

It’s not just local recruits, either, as several out-of-state commits and targets from the likes of Hawaii and Florida will make the trip.

UCLA and its recruiting staff is casting a wide net and looking to make a big impression.

“UCLA needs to keep the Cali recruits in Cali,” Bruins right guard Josh Carlin said. “That’s one of the biggest things and I think every coach continues to work on that. And no better way to go out there and for us to dominate the game — saying that UCLA is here to stay in the Big Ten.”