Blue White Illustrated

NOV. 7, 1964, AT COLUMBUS, OHIO Penn State 27, Ohio State 0 The Associated Press voted this improbable win over 14-point favorite Ohio State "College Football's Upset of the Year." Penn State had lost four of its first five games before winning two more. It was facing a Buckeye team that was ranked second in the country, was averaging 23 points per game and had yielded a total of 26 points all season. Ohio State could not cross midfield until three minutes were left, as the Lions, led by two-way lineman Glenn Ressler, pulverized the shocked Buckeyes. SEPT. 29, 1967, AT MIAMI Penn State 17, Miami 8 This game has been all but forgotten, but it was the pivotal one in Joe Paterno's career. After being severely criticized for finishing 5-5 in his first season as head coach and losing to underdog Navy, 2322, in the 1967 opener, Paterno replaced veteran defensive starters with untested sophomores early in the game against the Top-20-ranked Hurricanes, 11-point favorites, and went on to win 30 of his next 32 games. JAN. 1, 1972, AT DALLAS Penn State 30, Texas 6 After being accused of ducking a Cotton Bowl matchup with eventual national champion Texas in 1969, and branded a typical Eastern football weakling, PSU regained respect by embarrassing the 6point favorite Longhorns in the '72 Cotton Bowl. While the offense ran and passed at will, Penn State's defense shut down Texas' overpowering wishbone offense. Paterno said, "I don't think we've ever had a game we had to win more than this one. " NOV. 28, 1981, AT PITTSBURGH Penn State 48, Pitt 14 In what was the greatest victory of all time over Penn State's bitterest rival, the 6-point underdog Nittany Lions stormed back from a 14-0 deficit early in the second quarter to shock No. 1 Pitt and its cocky fans. Pitt seemed poised to turn the game into rout until Roger Jackson's end zone interception denied the Panthers their third touchdown and ignited an amazing reversal of fortune. SEPT. 27, 1982, AT UNIVERSITY PARK, PA. Penn State 27, Nebraska 24 Because it ended with Penn State scoring the winning touchdown on a last-minute drive with no timeouts and two controversial pass receptions, this game is often overlooked as an upset. However, the No. 2 Cornhuskers were a slight favorite over the No. 8 Lions and without a win, it's doubtful Penn State would have reached the national championship game in the Sugar Bowl. SEPT. 7, 1985, AT COLLEGE PARK, MD. Penn State 20, Maryland 18 In the opening game of the season against a seventh-ranked Maryland team that was being hailed as a national championship contender, Michael Zordich's dramatic pass interception for a touchdown on the second play of the game set the tone for the lightly regarded Lions. The game did not end until a fumble recovery within range of the Penn State end zone, and the Lions went on to play for the national title against Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl. JAN. 2, 1987, AT TEMPE, ARIZ. Penn State 14, Miami 10 This is the greatest game of all time for Penn State with an unbelievable Hollywood ending. Clinging to a four-point lead, the Lions couldn't seem to stop a determined Miami drive in the last three minutes that began at the Hurricanes' 23-yard line and didn't end until a fourth-and-goal pass by Testaverde with 18 seconds left was intercepted by linebacker Pete Giftopoulos in what remains the most meaningful play in Nittany Lion history. NOV. 17, 1990, AT SOUTH BEND, IND. Penn State 22, Notre Dame 21 On the last play of the game in the cold and hostile environment at legendary Notre Dame Stadium, true freshman kicker Craig Fayak booted a 34-yard field goal to upset No. 1 Notre Dame. Later, holder Bill Spoor said Fayak calmly told him before the kick, "Hey, it's just like kicking in my backyard. I have a goal post there and I've made this kick a million times." OCT. 8, 2005, AT UNIVERSITY PARK, PA. Penn State 17, Ohio State 10 Tamba Hali's sack and forced fumble, recovered by Scott Paxson with 1:28 left in the game, punctuated this win over No. 6 Ohio State, a three-point favorite. The victory and the 34-29 win at Northwestern two weeks earlier helped thrust the Lions back into the elite of college football after they finished with losing records four of the previous five years. The celebration I went on for hours in State College. HONORABLE MENTION NAME LOCATION SCORE Oct. 7, 1899 Oct. 6, 1906 Oct. 28, 1911 Oct. 29, 1921 Oct. 20, 1923 Oct. 26, 1929 Nov. 16, 1946 Nov. 21, 1953 Dec. 30, 1961 Nov. 27, 1958 Jan. 1, 1970 Nov. 1, 1975 Oct. 4, 1980 Oct. 8, 1983 Oct. 25, 1986 Nov. 21, 1987 Dec. 29, 1989 Jan. 1, 1994 Sept. 20, 2000 Oct. 27, 2001 West Point, N.Y. Williamsport, Pa. Philadelphia New York State College, Pa. (Homecoming) State College, Pa. (Homecoming) Annapolis, Md. Pittsburgh Jacksonville, Fla. (Gator Bowl) Pittsburgh Miami (Orange Bowl) College Park, Md. Columbia, Mo. University Park, Pa. Tuscaloosa, Ala. University Park, Pa. San Diego (Holiday Bowl) Orlando, Fla. (Citrus Bowl) West Lafayette, Ind. University Park, Pa. Penn State Penn State Penn State Penn State Penn State Penn State Penn State Penn State Penn State Penn State Penn State Penn State Penn State Penn State Penn State Penn State Penn State Penn State Penn State Penn State 6 4 22 28 21 6 12 17 30 25 10 15 29 34 23 21 50 31 22 29 Army Carlisle Indians Penn Georgia Tech Navy Lafayette Navy Pitt Georgia Tech Pitt Missouri Maryland Missouri Alabama Alabama Notre Dame BYU Tennessee Purdue Ohio State 0 0 6 7 3 3 7 0 15 21 3 13 21 28 3 20 39 13 20 27

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