Best PSU Team
- Thread starter mcpat
- Start date
I have a bias for the 1982 and 1986 teams and I am incapable of picking one over the other.
So I decided after doing a little research to select the 1912 team.
RE that team, I discovered the following:
Points scored - 285
Points allowed - 6
I don't really know anything else about that team but those stats are pretty impressive!
1986 and it shouldn’t be really close. They beat one of the great Miami teams led by a HoF coach and studded with future NFL players, including 3 top 10 picks that year - Testaverde, Highsmith and JB. Miami had outscored opponents by more than 300 points - beating the preseason #1 and defending champ Ou convincingly. OU finished 3rd - somehow getting 3 1st place votes (surely from the Tulsa, Okc and Taluquah writers). PSU left no doubt
1994 was the greatest and most dominant PSU team ever. I don’t think 1986 compares.
I agree. And don't forget this team was undefeated the year prior and played for the NC in 85. And with all due respect to John - Penn State's defense deserved the NC in 85. They played a tremendous game against Oklahoma but Shaffer's poor play was too much to overcome.
Jimmy Johnson has stated that Miami team was the best in terms of talent in the history college football. What Paterno did along with his staff and players was the greatest performance in the history of Penn State football and it will never be duplicated. And IMHO this was the greatest example of a tremendous coach beating superior talent. And the players on that team exemplified heart and toughness.
I met Trey Bauer a couple of years ago and asked him about hitting Irvin in the head with the ball after Miami players ran through our stretch lines. He said the Miami players were "fuc&ing derelicts."
You put Kerry Collins on 86 team and it would rank with the 72 Trojans or 2001 Canes.
Exactly. The 1986 team was my favorite team because of its resiliency but the 1994 team was far superior.
Here is why I voted ‘94 over ‘86.
86 was certainly a GREAT team with a fabulous Defense. Offensively I think the rode the edge of having to be mistake free.
94 had an outstanding offense and a ‘serviceable enough’ (?) defense. The Offense could and did overcome anything. Usually with great ease. Case in Point. The Rose bowl. OU takes the opening series and has some success. One play and that game was over. PSU toyed with them. 86 couldn’t toy with the opponent.
I’m about five years too young to be able to assess ‘69. Awesome defense. But i still think it’s 1994 for me
86 was certainly a GREAT team with a fabulous Defense. Offensively I think the rode the edge of having to be mistake free.
94 had an outstanding offense and a ‘serviceable enough’ (?) defense. The Offense could and did overcome anything. Usually with great ease. Case in Point. The Rose bowl. OU takes the opening series and has some success. One play and that game was over. PSU toyed with them. 86 couldn’t toy with the opponent.
I’m about five years too young to be able to assess ‘69. Awesome defense. But i still think it’s 1994 for me
The '69 defense was Penn State's best modern defense (modern as in hey I can remember it). The '94 offense clearly Penn State's best offense.
The '82 team may have been the best balanced offense and defense. They beat six top 15 teams and were the first national championship team to have more passing yards than rushing (how about that Paterno fans!) and were the first national champion to play the toughest schedule in the country as they faced: #2 Nebraska, #4 Alabama, #13 West Virginia, #13 Notre Dame, #5 Pitt and #1 Georgia.
Billingsley has Penn State's best teams ranked in his top 200 all-time:
#25 1994 Penn State
#32 1986 Penn State
#75 1973 Penn State
#79 1982 Penn State
#88 1969 Penn State
#126 1978 Penn State
#158 1968 Penn State
www.cfrc.com
ESPN's top 150 college football teams all-time back in 2019 had:
#16 1994 Penn State
#26 1986 Penn Sate
#46 1969 Penn State
#60 1973 Penn State
#79 1982 Penn State
#83 1968 Penn State
#99 1978 Penn State
www.espn.com.au
The '82 team may have been the best balanced offense and defense. They beat six top 15 teams and were the first national championship team to have more passing yards than rushing (how about that Paterno fans!) and were the first national champion to play the toughest schedule in the country as they faced: #2 Nebraska, #4 Alabama, #13 West Virginia, #13 Notre Dame, #5 Pitt and #1 Georgia.
Billingsley has Penn State's best teams ranked in his top 200 all-time:
#25 1994 Penn State
#32 1986 Penn State
#75 1973 Penn State
#79 1982 Penn State
#88 1969 Penn State
#126 1978 Penn State
#158 1968 Penn State
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ESPN's top 150 college football teams all-time back in 2019 had:
#16 1994 Penn State
#26 1986 Penn Sate
#46 1969 Penn State
#60 1973 Penn State
#79 1982 Penn State
#83 1968 Penn State
#99 1978 Penn State
The 150 greatest teams in college football's 150-year history
The best single-season teams ever, ranked by a panel of 150 media members, athletic administrators and former players and coaches.
I think 78 would be right there if we just could've punched it in from the 1. That game still hurts.
It’s 1986 and it’s not particularly close. That defense was insane and absolutely shut down Miami in the title game, a team that was chock full of NFL stars.
Miami had 445 yards on offense and 22 first downs. It was the INTs that saved us. 7 Miami turnovers total; 5 INTs and 2 Fumbles.
People dismiss the 1994 squad’s defense but we’d be up by so much that the backups saw significant playing time which led to skewed defensive stats.
They took a Heisman winning QB and made him look like a true Freshman in his first game, picking him off five times. It’s about points, not yards.
“I don’t mean to downplay them (the Hurricanes),” Penn State linebacker Shane Conlan said, “but they talked a lot about how short our defensive backs are, how slow they are. But we can hit. They didn’t want to catch the ball. They just did not want to catch the ball, and that was the key to the game.“
Graduated in 86, knew most/many of the defensive players, some pretty well. So I am biased toward the 86 team.
1994 Team would beat the 86 team 9 times out of 10. If Miami was even paying attention, they could have run the ball on us, limited turnovers and won the game. The 86 team would struggle with the amount of weapons that 1994 team had, and a coach that would take the run if it was there, instead of throwing into crazy zone defenses.
The 86 offense was tough, Dozier was very good, OL good......without a real weapon at WR and a game manager at QB.
Love 86.......no way they compete with 1994. 35 - 13 1994 over 1986 in Tempe.
1994 Team would beat the 86 team 9 times out of 10. If Miami was even paying attention, they could have run the ball on us, limited turnovers and won the game. The 86 team would struggle with the amount of weapons that 1994 team had, and a coach that would take the run if it was there, instead of throwing into crazy zone defenses.
The 86 offense was tough, Dozier was very good, OL good......without a real weapon at WR and a game manager at QB.
Love 86.......no way they compete with 1994. 35 - 13 1994 over 1986 in Tempe.
Exactly. Was sure that Miami would pull
the game out by running Highsmith on 1st and goal from inside the 5. He gashed us repeatedly on the ground on the last Miami possession. Fortunately Testaverde convinced Johnson to pass and got sacked for big loss on 1st down. Like I said ‘86 team was my favorite but ‘94 was one of the best college teams in college football history.
