PASADENA, Calif. -- The constant haze of smog that hangs over Southern California suddenly lifted on the 2nd of January, 1995. The shadow of a mountain that hid behind the Rose Bowl stadium surfaced. Pompons screaming of blue and white and green and gold split the 102,000 fans down the middle.

As the No. 2 Nittany Lions, first-time champions of the Big Ten conference, and the Pac-10 champion No. 12 Oregon Ducks took the field for the 81st Rose Bowl, everything was perfectly clear.

A victory would satisfy Lion Coach Joe Paterno, who was aiming for his 16th major bowl win, a mark that would make him the all-time winningest coach in bowl games and the first to win the four major bowls: Cotton, Sugar, Orange and Rose.

It would also give Paterno his fifth undefeated, untied team in 29 years. There was a chance at a third national championship team.

Or a fourth that finished undefeated, untied and uncrowned.

As the evening unfolded and the Lions (12-0) exited the field victoriously with a 38-20 Rose Bowl win over Oregon (9-4), they accomplished their goals, but suffered the incapability of controlling their destiny.

"We proved to everybody in the country that we are certainly worthy to be considered national champions just as much as anybody else," said Paterno as he proclaimed his team "national champions."

This was after the national championship had already been conceded to Nebraska Coach Tom Osborne and his top-ranked Cornhuskers by NBC host Bob Costas during the Orange Bowl telecast the night before, but before the polls were voted on by sportswriters and broadcasters of the Associated Press and coaches selected by the Cable News Network and USA Today.

Nebraska apparently won the title after defeating No. 3 Miami, 24-17, in dramatic fashion in the Orange Bowl on Jan. 1. However, they shared the distinction of being the only undefeated team in the nation with the Lions.

They would not share the national championship.

It appeared early that the heavily-favored Nittany Lions would have their way with Oregon's "Gang Green" defense, as Ki-Jana Carter broke cornerback Herman O'Berry's tackle at the line of scrimmage and burst 83 yards for a touchdown only 13 seconds into Penn State's first offensive possession.

"Ki-Jana Carter is the real deal," said Oregon Coach Rich Brooks after the effervescent redshirt junior tailback gained 156 yards on 21 carries. For the game, the Lions rambled for 228 yards on the ground compared to Oregon's paltry 45.

Carter, a consensus All-American and Heisman Trophy runner-up, was convincing enough to reassure expectations he won't return for his final season of eligibility. But Carter says he won't make up his mind until after he speaks with Paterno and his mother, Kathy, about his future. He will announce his decision at a press conference at 11 a.m. today.

"I was more impressed with him coming out of the game than I was coming into the game," Brooks said.

His Rose Bowl record-tying three touchdowns notwithstanding, even Carter's glowing performance was overshadowed by one of his opponents. Carter shared co-player of the game honors with Ducks quarterback Danny O'Neil.

But O'Neil was clearly the star.

A 6-foot-2, 179-pound senior, he was neither as physically imposing or nationally decorated as his counterpart, Kerry Collins. Yet O'Neil singlehandedly picked apart a Lion secondary that was suspect to begin with. He shattered Rose Bowl records with 41 completions in 61 attempts while throwing for 456 yards.

O'Neil responded to Carter's score with a spectacular drive of his own, guiding the Ducks 80 yards on five plays in only 45 seconds. He found tight end Josh Wilcox for an 18-yard gain on the first play. On the next, a screen in the flat to tailback Dino Philyaw that gained another 28. Then O'Neil hit Wilcox streaking down the left sideline for a 33-yard gain to Penn State's 1-yard line.

One play later, Philyaw was stuffed at the line of scrimmage. But an offsides penalty against the Lions gave Oregon possession only inches away from the goal, and on the next play O'Neil rolled out and threw to a wide-open Wilcox for a touchdown. The two connected 11 times on the evening for 135 yards.

And the Ducks were quickly back in the ballgame. The unlikeliest of opponents, Oregon had rebounded from a 1-2 start that included a loss to Hawaii to win six of its last seven, capturing the Pac-10 championship and its first Rose Bowl berth in 37 years.

A 17-point underdog despite a No. 12 ranking in national polls, the Ducks heralded "Gang Green" defense was facing its stiffest challenge against a Lion offense that led the nation in scoring at 47.8 points per game and total offense at 520.2 yards per game.

A seven-play, 73-yard drive set up by a 44-yard pass from Collins to seldom-used split end Joe Jurevicius and completed on fullback Brian Milne's 1-yard score gave the Lions a 14-7 advantage minutes before halftime. That drive and Carter's opening touchdown run aside, Oregon's aggressive defense humbled the Lions' ferocious scoring machine.

"I thought we pretty well dominated most of the play the rest of that half," Brooks said. "Unfortunately, we only had seven points to show for it."

If not for a last-second gaffe by O'Neil, the Ducks could have sliced the deficit upon entering the intermission. After driving the Ducks from their own 18 in 80 seconds on a series of short, dump passes good for five first downs, O'Neil found flanker Cristin McLemore at the 4-yard line with the half's final seconds ticking away. But McLemore was too far from both the end zone and the sideline. "The last play before the half is a killer," Brooks said.

As time expired, the Ducks were compensated with neither touchdown nor field goal, but the knowledge that they could drive at will against Penn State's defense.

What Oregon couldn't do was take advantage of its opportunities. Time and time again, the Lions came up big on third-down situations, halting the Ducks deep in their own territory twice early in the second half and forcing them to punt.

But Gang Green hung tough and stifled the Lions each time.

Then, as the Lions marched downfield on their third drive of the half, Ducks linebacker Reggie Jordan intervened with a Collins pass headed for tight end Kyle Brady. Flushed by a blitz, Collins had hurried the toss to the right sideline. Brady slipped and Jordan stepped in front of the pass and returned 38 yards to the Penn State 17.

O'Neil threaded a bullet between Lion defensive backs Tony Pittman and Chuck Penzenik to McLemore for a 17-yard touchdown that tied the game. Suddenly, 4:54 remained in the third quarter and it seemed the Oregon Ducks were on the verge of upsetting the mighty Nittany Lions.

"We failed to respond after we got the 14-all," Brooks said.

But Ambrose Fletcher didn't.

A redshirt tailback who joined the Lions as a walk-on last season, Fletcher received the kickoff at Penn State's 7-yard line, broke up the middle and found a seam at the 35. He sped past Oregon defenders, including kicker Matt Belden, before Isaac Walker dragged him out of bounds at the Ducks 21. Fletcher's 72-yard return gave the Lions their best field position of the day.

"That was the big turning point for the game," flanker Freddie Scott said.

And as the clear day grew into an overcast night and darkness fell over the stadium, the Lion offense regained form. Oregon, with it's spirit broken and chances of upset dwindling, watched helplessly as Penn State flourished.

Carter ran for four yards on first down. On the next play, he found daylight in a hole large enough to accomodate the student section seated in the end zone. He would scamper into that end zone from 17 yards away for a touchdown that gave the Lions a 21-14 lead at 3:53 in the third quarter.

This time, O'Neil responded by throwing his second interception into the hands of Penzenik, who was making his first career start at a new position: free safety. The redshirt sophomore, listed as the No. 4 right cornerback on preseason depth charts, was filling in for injured starters Cliff Dingle and Kim Herring. He returned the ball 44 yards to the Oregon 13.

Carter went left for his third score three plays later to give the Lions a 28-14 cushion at 2:01 of the third quarter.

O'Neil valiantly drove the Ducks downfield once again, this time to the Lions' 28. But for the third time, Belden missed a field-goal attempt from 44 yards.

Brett Conway gave the Lions a 31-14 lead with 5:43 left in the fourth quarter after splitting the uprights on a 43-yard field goal. Conway had missed his previous two.

O'Neil was sacked for the sixth time on 4th-and-5 on Oregon's 23 for a 9-yard loss.

Lion fullback Jon Witman carried around the left end for 4 yards, then drove straight up the gut for a 6-yard touchdown to give the Lions a 38-14 cushion with 4:24 remaining.

A final 12-play, 75-yard drive finished by Ricky Whittle's 1-yard touchdown cut the lead to 38-20. But the Lions preserved the 18-point advantage when Penzenik knocked McLemore out of bounds at the 1-yard line on the two-point conversion.

As expected, the Lions were victorious, covering the 17-point spread as well. And with the fury of any great team -- championship-caliber teams -- the Lions made the big plays when they had to.

If the last word is left up to voters, Nebraska is the 1994 national champion.

Both the AP and USA Today/CNN Coaches' polls voted Nebraska (13-0) No. 1.

But if the Lions have a final say, they will crown themselves.

"Who's to say that we're not national champions?" Brady said. "It's all mythical, really."