Victory Bell ( USC – UCLA ) The Victory Bell is an annual trophy given to either the University of Southern California or the University of California , Los Angeles . The winner of the annual UCLA – USC rivalry football contest keeps the bell for the next year , and paints it the school ' s color : " True Blue " for UCLA , or cardinal for USC . The Victory Bell is a 295 - pound brass bell that originally rang atop a Southern Pacific railroad locomotive . It is currently mounted on a special wheeled carriage . History . The bell was given to the UCLA student body in 1939 as a gift from the school ' s Alumni Association . Initially , the UCLA cheerleaders rang the bell after each Bruin point . However , during the opening game of UCLA ' s 1941 season ( at the time , both schools used the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum for home games ) , six members of USC ' s Trojan Knights ( who were also members of the SigEp fraternity ) infiltrated the Bruin rooting section , assisted in loading the bell aboard a truck headed back to Westwood , took the key to the truck , and escaped with the bell while UCLA ' s actual rooters went to find a replacement key . The bell remained hidden from UCLA students for more than a year , first in SigEp ’ s basement , then in the Hollywood Hills , Santa Ana and other locations . At one point , it was even concealed beneath a haystack . Bruin students tried to locate the bell , but to no avail . A picture of the bell appeared in a USC periodical . Tension between UCLA and USC students rose as each started to play even more elaborate and disruptive pranks on the other . When the conflict caused the USC President to threaten to cancel the rivalry , a compromise was met : on November 12 , 1942 , the student body presidents of both schools , in front of Tommy Trojan , signed the agreement that the bell would be the trophy for the game . USC . Before home games , when the bell is in USC ' s possession , it sits along Trousdale Parkway for fans to ring as they participate in the " Trojan Walk " to the L . A . Coliseum . During home games , and whenever USC faces UCLA at the Rose Bowl , the Victory Bell is displayed at the edge of the field for the first three quarters of the game . Members of the Trojan Knights ring the bell every time the Trojans score . The carriage is painted cardinal red . UCLA . When the bell is in UCLA ' s possession , the carriage is sandblasted and painted " True Blue " . While in the possession of UCLA , the Bell is safeguarded by the UCLA Rally Committee . During UCLA home games at the Rose Bowl and whenever UCLA faces USC at the Los Angeles Coliseum , it resides on the field in front of the student section . It is rung by members of the Rally Committee after each score . The Bruins also ring the bell using a rope attached to the handle , swinging the whole bell , as opposed to the Trojan style of attaching a rope to the tongue or clapper on the inside of the bell . The Bell also makes special appearances at rallies and athletic events . It has been used to accompany the UCLA Band during halftime shows . In particular the bell will make an appearance at a major gathering if the bell returns to UCLA . Series record . The first victory for UCLA in the series occurred after the agreement , making the Bruins the first winner of the trophy . The Bruins made their post - season appearance in the 1943 Rose Bowl . The teams played each other twice in the same season in 1943 , 1944 , and 1945 . This was due to travel restrictions during World War II . UCLA took back the bell following the 38 - 28 victory over USC on November 17 , 2012 . The Victory Bell was held by USC during the 1999 - 2005 and 2007 - 2011 football seasons . USC leads with an overall record of 46 * - 29 - 7 in football contests with UCLA ( * two of USC ' s wins have been vacated ) . Before the streak of seven Trojan wins , the Bruins had won the Bell for the eight consecutive years from 1991 – 1998 , the longest streak in the rivalry . There have been 7 ties and one overtime game ( 1996 , 2OT ) in the history of the series . In the event of a tie , the Victory Bell was retained by the last winner . Since the institution of the overtime rule in college football , the tie rule became obsolete .