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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 <-- 1986 <- 1987 -> 1988 --> 2024

1987 Season Highlights

Joe Paterno enters his 22nd season as Head Coach at Penn State.

1987 Season

Date	Opponent	Score
Sat., Sep. 5	vs. Bowling Green State	45	19	W
Sat., Sep. 12	vs. Alabama	13	24	L
Sat., Sep. 19	vs. Cincinnati	41	0	W
Sat., Sep. 26	@ Boston College	27	17	W	@ Foxboro, MA
Sat., Oct. 3	vs. Temple	27	13	W
Sat., Oct. 10	vs. Rutgers	35	21	W
Sat., Oct. 17	@ Syracuse	21	48	L
Sat., Oct. 31	vs. West Virginia	25	21	W
Sat., Nov. 7	@ Maryland	21	16	W	@ Baltimore, MD
Sat., Nov. 14	@ Pittsburgh	0	10	L
Sat., Nov. 21	vs. Notre Dame	21	20	W
Fri., Jan. 1	Clemson	10	35	L	@ Orlando, FL	Capital One Bowl

1987 Season Totals
Record	8-4
Points Scored	286
Scoring Average	23.8
Points Allowed	244
Defense Average	20.3
Opponents Record	72-54
Conference Record	0-0
Home Record	6-1
Away Record	2-2

1987 NCAA Final Rankings
Rank	Record	Source
23	8-4-0	USA Today/CNN

1987 Independent- Standings
	Season			Bowls	Conference
Team	W/L/T	PF	PA		W/L/T	PF	PA	Coach
Florida State	11-1	481	163	Won 31-28				Bobby Bowden
Syracuse	11-0-1	379	169	Tied 16-16				Dick MacPherson
Central Florida	9-4	401	210					Gene McDowell
Georgia Southern	9-4	283	220					Erk Russell
James Madison	9-3	283	197					Joe Purzycki
Arkansas State	8-4-1	395	277					Larry Lacewell
Notre Dame	8-4	339	218	Lost 10-35				Lou Holtz
Penn State	8-4	286	244	Lost 10-35				Joe Paterno
Pittsburgh	8-4	230	146	Lost 27-32				Mike Gottfried
South Carolina	8-4	341	141	Lost 13-30				Joe Morrison
Western Kentucky	7-4	263	217					Dave Roberts
Louisiana	6-5	191	252					Nelson Stokley
Rutgers	6-5	168	213					Dick Anderson
Southern Mississippi	6-5	270	296					Jim Carmody
Tulane	6-6	370	376	Lost 12-24				Mack Brown
West Virginia	6-6	330	212	Lost 33-35				Don Nehlen
Army	5-6	277	223					Jim Young
Boston College	5-6	244	281					Jack Bicknell, Sr.
East Carolina	5-6	229	330					Art Baker
Memphis	5-5-1	220	210					Charlie Bailey
Northern Illinois	5-5-1	305	262					Jerry Pettibone
Akron	4-7	204	273					Gerry Faust
Cincinnati	4-7	234	314					Dave Currey
Buffalo	3-7	151	204					Bill Dando
Liberty	3-7	174	248					Morgan Hout
Louisiana Tech	3-8	108	197					Carl Torbush
Louisville	3-7-1	215	348					Howard Schnellenberger
Temple	3-8	154	251					Bruce Arians
Tulsa	3-8	175	371					George Henshaw
Navy	2-9	160	317					Elliot Uzelac
Virginia Tech	2-9	203	300					Frank Beamer

1987 All American Awards
Player	Position	Class	Ht.	Wt.	Award	Team	Source
Coming Someday

1987 All Independent Conference Players
Player	Position	Class	Ht.	Wt.	Team	Source
Coming Someday

Some records may be incomplete.

Great Moments in College Football History

Quarterbacks from Alabama won the first three Super Bowls. They also have more Super Bowl wins than quarterbacks from any other school (Kenny Stabler 1, Joe Namath 1 and Bart Starr 2).