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Penn State Football Team History

Penn State Nittany Lions

The Pennsylvania State University
University Park, PA
Founded: 1855
Stadium: Beaver Stadium
Capacity: 106,537
Colors: Blue & White
Coach: Joe Paterno
Conference: Independent-

Select Year:

1881 <-- 1979 <- 1980 -> 1981 --> 2024

1980 Season Highlights

Joe Paterno enters his 15th season as Head Coach at Penn State.

1980 Season

Date	Opponent	Score
Sat., Sep. 6	vs. Colgate	54	10	W
Sat., Sep. 20	@ Texas A&M	25	9	W
Sat., Sep. 27	vs. Nebraska	7	21	L
Sat., Oct. 4	@ Missouri	29	21	W
Sat., Oct. 11	@ Maryland	24	10	W
Sat., Oct. 18	vs. Syracuse	24	7	W
Sat., Oct. 25	@ West Virginia	20	15	W
Sat., Nov. 1	vs. Miami (Florida)	27	12	W
Sat., Nov. 8	vs. North Carolina State	21	13	W
Sat., Nov. 15	@ Temple	50	7	W
Sat., Nov. 22	vs. Pittsburgh	9	14	L
Fri., Dec. 26	Ohio State	31	19	W	@ Tempe, AZ	Fiesta Bowl

1980 Season Totals
Record	10-2
Points Scored	321
Scoring Average	26.8
Points Allowed	158
Defense Average	13.2
Opponents Record	71-45
Conference Record	0-0
Home Record	4-2
Away Record	5-0

1980 NCAA Final Rankings
Rank	Record	Source
8	10-2-0	AP
8	10-2-0	Coaches
8	10-2-0	UPI

1980 Independent- Standings
	Season			Bowls	Conference
Team	W/L/T	PF	PA		W/L/T	PF	PA	Coach
Louisiana Monroe	7-4	296	267					John David Crow
Pittsburgh	11-1	380	130	Won 37-9				Jackie Sherrill
Florida State	10-2	369	103	Lost 17-18				Bobby Bowden
Penn State	10-2	321	158	Won 31-19				Joe Paterno
Notre Dame	9-2-1	248	128	Lost 10-17				Dan Devine
Southern Mississippi	9-3	290	183	Won 16-14				Bobby Collins
Navy	8-4	226	146	Lost 0-35				George Welsh
South Carolina	8-4	348	200	Lost 9-37				Jim Carlen
Virginia Tech	8-4	249	129	Lost 10-20				Bill Dooley
Boston College	7-4	199	186					Ed Chlebek
Liberty	7-3	272	180					Tom Dowling
Nevada Las Vegas	7-4	384	257					Tony Knap
Rutgers	7-4	279	156					Frank R. Burns
Tulane	7-5	279	243	Lost 15-34				Vince Gibson
North Texas	6-5	265	252					Jerry Moore
West Virginia	6-6	305	289					Don Nehlen
Buffalo	5-6	132	247					Bill Dando
Louisville	5-6	162	203					Bob Weber
Syracuse	5-6	207	222					Frank Maloney
East Carolina	4-7	192	312					Ed Emory
James Madison	4-6	148	207					Challace McMillin
Temple	4-7	170	262					Wayne Hardin
Akron	3-7-1	134	183					Jim Dennison
Army	3-7-1	204	295					Ed Cavanaugh
Central Florida	3-5-1	156	175					Don Jonas
Cincinnati	2-9	122	271					Ralph Staub
Memphis	2-9	115	255					Richard Williamson

1980 All American Awards
Player	Position	Class	Ht.	Wt.	Award	Team	Source
Coming Someday

1980 All Independent Conference Players
Player	Position	Class	Ht.	Wt.	Team	Source
Coming Someday

Some records may be incomplete.

Great Moments in College Football History

The first bowl game, later known as The Rose Bowl, was played on January 1st, 1902 between the Michigan Wolverines and Stanford Cardinals. Michigan won 49-0.