PASADENA, Calif. (AP) – Vince Young and Texas are second no more to Southern California and its Heisman Trophy twins, Reggie Bush and Matt Leinart.

With the national championship down to a final play, Young scrambled for an 8-yard touchdown on fourth down with 19 seconds left and the No. 2 Longhorns stunned the top-ranked Trojans 41-38 in the Rose Bowl on Wednesday night.

The high-scoring game everyone expected to see broke out in the second half – yet it was a defensive stop that was the key for Texas. The Longhorns stuffed LenDale White on a fourth-and-2 at midfield with 2:09 left, giving them a final chance.

Young, the Heisman runner-up, took advantage, scoring a TD and running for a 2-point conversion.

With the two highest scoring teams in the country, many figured it would come down to which team had the ball last.

Almost.

USC crossed midfield one more time, but on the last play of the game, Leinart’s pass sailed high over Dwayne Jarrett’s head around the 25 and USC’s 34-game winning streak was over.

White’s third touchdown gave Southern California a 24-23 lead after three quarters .

The teams traded the lead twice in the third quarter as college football’s two best offenses opened things up. Texas did it behind Young, who stiff-armed a defender before diving in the end zone for a touchdown. USC did it behind White, who shed tacklers on TD runs of 4 and 12 yards.

David Pino missed a 31-yard yard field goal at the start of the fourth quarter that would have given Texas the lead. He also botched an extra point in the second quarter that was the margin of difference.

Pino’s misses loomed large a day after fans across the country watched Penn State and Florida State botch several kicks in the Orange Bowl. Only in this game, a national championship hung in the balance.

USC was trying to win its unprecedented third straight title. Texas was trying to claim its first outright championship since 1969.

Young eluded the defense – and the replay officials – and second-ranked Texas broke loose with a big second quarter to take a 16-10 halftime lead. For the fifth time this season, the Trojans trailed at the break.

Shut out in the first quarter for the first time this season, the Longhorns’ high-powered offense roared back with a no-huddle attack that drove 80 yards for their first touchdown.

Meantime, the Texas defense bottled up the Trojans’ Heisman Trophy duo of Leinart and Bush in the first half. In fact, with USC leading 7-0 and storming to another score, it was a foolish pitch by Bush that shifted the momentum to Texas.

In a game matching unbeaten teams averaging 50 points per game, turnovers kept getting in the way.

The key play came when Bush pitched the ball on a breakaway run and Texas recovered it. Bush’s mistake led to Pino’s 46-yard field.

Later, Leinart threw his first interception in three championship games in the Texas end zone.

Young then moved quickly downfield, and the Longhorns scored when he broke through the left side of the line. He pitched the ball to tailback Selvin Young, who slipped through three tacklers to get into the end zone.

Young was being tackled when he tossed it, and television replays showed his knee was down before it left his hands. Game officials did not review the play and USC coach Pete Carroll did not call a timeout to try to force their hand.

A moment later, a TV shot of the replay booth showed three officials looking closely at the screen in front of them. One official pulled away and shook his head, as if realizing the call had been missed.

Coach Mack Brown’s team struck again with the up-tempo offense when Ramonce Taylor scampered 30 yards for a 16-7 lead.

Southern California, which came in the game with a 34-game winning streak and drawing comparisons to some of the greatest college teams in history, seemed rattled by the Longhorns’ burst.

The Trojans got off to a quick start in taking an early 7-0 lead on LenDale White’s 4-yard TD run. They capitalized on two huge mistakes by the Longhorns before a sea of fans wearing burnt orange.

After forcing USC to punt on its opening drive, Texas gave it right back when Aaron Ross fumbled the ball. Ross has two returns for touchdowns this season, but dropped the ball when he was spun around and took a vicious hit by Scott Ware.

Southern California has punished opponents by forcing turnovers all season. They did it again when Leinart hit David Kirtman for a 23-yard gain – a vicious hit knocked off Kirtman’s helmet. The play set up White’s score.

Both 12-0, USC and Texas have been ranked 1-2 since the preseason and rolled through their schedules with the highest scoring offenses in the country. The Longhorns average a point more than USC – even so, the Trojans were favored to win by about a touchdown.

The Trojans also boast the last two Heisman winners. Leinart won in 2004 and Bush, who won this season, were the first two Heisman duo to play together in a college game.

The Longhorns have won 19 in a row behind Young, who finished second to Bush this year for the Heisman.

For Young, the Rose Bowl was a return to the biggest game of his career. He ran for 192 yards, passed for 180 more and accounted for five touchdowns last season in a 38-37 win over Michigan in Texas’ first Rose Bowl appearance.

AP-ES-01-04-06 2329EST