Not as big as the MNC games but the 1978 win at Ohio State (19-0) was pretty darn sweet.
was thinking about best wins and worst losses
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So many interesting and fun considerations for both W and L. A few from the early JVP years that come to mind:
1967: W over #2 NC State.
Also '67: Tie that felt like a Loss vs. Fla. State in the Gator Bowl when the game was well in hand.
1968: W over a really good Kansas (Bobby Douglas, John Riggins) team in the bowl. PSU now on the national map.
1969: W over a good Colorado team (with Bobby Anderson at QB) at home; W (10-3) over an outstanding Mizzou team, considered an offensive machine that season. Reporter Q after the game: "How long could you have held them off?" Defensive Captain Dennis Onkotz (I believe): "Forever". Mizzou coach Dan Devine, who had manhandled Michigan early in the season - the same Michigan team who later dismantled #1 Ohio State 24-12: "If Texas is #1, then Penn State is #1A". '69 PSU team is one I count as a National Champ in the official Bob78 poll.
1970: Bad L at Colorado, bad L at Wisconsin, bad L at home vs. Syracuse. 7-3 season. 10-0 Dartmouth Big F'ing Green awarded the Lambert Trophy, and declines Joe's invitation to play PSU in a post-season game in NYC.
1971: Bad L at Tennessee on "Honoring the Majors Family Day". Johnny coaching, Bobby scoring in a variety of ways.
1971: One of the best Ws in PSU history, 30-6 over Texas, deep in the heart. Smiles for weeks after that one.
1972: Bad (well, frustrating) L at Tenn. again, as a big rally falls short. Sugar Bowl L that year showed the greatness of the PSU defense, limiting a high-powered Oklahoma O to just 14 points (at least one TD thanks to a turnover deep in our own territory, iir) and the limits of the PSU offense that season, as Cappy sat out with an illness and we could not get anything going against an all-time Oklahoma defense, filled with AAs and future NFLers.
1973: W over LSU in the Orange.
1974: Bad L vs .Navy in the monsoon, 7-6 loss with enough fumbles and missed FGs to last the entire season.
1974 (or '75?? - we lost to them 2 consecutive seasons, both close upsets): Bad L vs .NC State at home (15-14?). Lou Holtz pulled a fake punt (or was it a quick kick?!) that half the PSU defending team saw coming and the other half didn't. You could practically hear the team calling "Black! Black! Black!" from the stands, the vocal alert to watch for a trick play.
That's it for my off-the-top recollection for now, going back 45 or 46 seasons. I may need to triple up on ginkgo biloba (or rocky balboa?) to come up with more from '67 - '75.
Plenty more good and some bad still to come! Most all of which are covered well in this thread.
Worst ever: 6-4 Iowa.
Best ever: Multiple ties for #1 imo, but 14-10 over Miami the standard to be met.
1967: W over #2 NC State.
Also '67: Tie that felt like a Loss vs. Fla. State in the Gator Bowl when the game was well in hand.
1968: W over a really good Kansas (Bobby Douglas, John Riggins) team in the bowl. PSU now on the national map.
1969: W over a good Colorado team (with Bobby Anderson at QB) at home; W (10-3) over an outstanding Mizzou team, considered an offensive machine that season. Reporter Q after the game: "How long could you have held them off?" Defensive Captain Dennis Onkotz (I believe): "Forever". Mizzou coach Dan Devine, who had manhandled Michigan early in the season - the same Michigan team who later dismantled #1 Ohio State 24-12: "If Texas is #1, then Penn State is #1A". '69 PSU team is one I count as a National Champ in the official Bob78 poll.
1970: Bad L at Colorado, bad L at Wisconsin, bad L at home vs. Syracuse. 7-3 season. 10-0 Dartmouth Big F'ing Green awarded the Lambert Trophy, and declines Joe's invitation to play PSU in a post-season game in NYC.
1971: Bad L at Tennessee on "Honoring the Majors Family Day". Johnny coaching, Bobby scoring in a variety of ways.
1971: One of the best Ws in PSU history, 30-6 over Texas, deep in the heart. Smiles for weeks after that one.
1972: Bad (well, frustrating) L at Tenn. again, as a big rally falls short. Sugar Bowl L that year showed the greatness of the PSU defense, limiting a high-powered Oklahoma O to just 14 points (at least one TD thanks to a turnover deep in our own territory, iir) and the limits of the PSU offense that season, as Cappy sat out with an illness and we could not get anything going against an all-time Oklahoma defense, filled with AAs and future NFLers.
1973: W over LSU in the Orange.
1974: Bad L vs .Navy in the monsoon, 7-6 loss with enough fumbles and missed FGs to last the entire season.
1974 (or '75?? - we lost to them 2 consecutive seasons, both close upsets): Bad L vs .NC State at home (15-14?). Lou Holtz pulled a fake punt (or was it a quick kick?!) that half the PSU defending team saw coming and the other half didn't. You could practically hear the team calling "Black! Black! Black!" from the stands, the vocal alert to watch for a trick play.
That's it for my off-the-top recollection for now, going back 45 or 46 seasons. I may need to triple up on ginkgo biloba (or rocky balboa?) to come up with more from '67 - '75.
Plenty more good and some bad still to come! Most all of which are covered well in this thread.
Worst ever: 6-4 Iowa.
Best ever: Multiple ties for #1 imo, but 14-10 over Miami the standard to be met.
I was at that one. I remember a Michigan fan noting "how does it feel to lose to the team that lost to App State". I just noted "We didn't lose to App State". Silence.
I was at that game, but it was a while ago--and I may have been conflating that one with the loss to Texas in 1990 (which I also was at).
Extenuating circumstances with a Houston bowl game - certainly was understandable
One of the top 10 wins for me was when PSU beat Purdue in 2000. With the heisman hype that was surrounding Drew Brees at the time, to knock him off in Beaver Stadium with how craptastic the season had gone to that point (L to USC, L to Toledo, W over Louisiana Tech, L to Pitt, L to OSU) was just such an amazing feeling.
It wasn't Robbie Gould they disrespected. It was the inept offense to who would never be able to even get within a shot at attempting a field goal. At that point in time the offense had scored a total of 23 points in nearly four games combined.
Actually it was the O and Gould they disrespected.
As great as his pro career has been, he was pretty poor at PSU. He missed a 25 yarder earlier in that game vs Iowa.....was only 7 of 13 in that (his senior) year.....and was only 39 of 61 in his career.
https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/boxscores/2004-10-23-penn-state.html
In case anyone want to look at the mind boggling poor offensive performance that game.
A few highlights though:
Passing
Zach Mills - 7/19 - 82 yds - 2 ints
Michael Robinson - 2/9 - 14 yds - 2 ints
Our leading receiver was Michael Robinson with 3 catches for 52 yards.
Our leading rusher was Tony Hunt with 48 yards on 16 attempts.
No question the O absolutely sucked.....a shame because the Iowa O absolutely sucked too.
This is my #1 for worst loss, it was won, taken away, then given away. Raised my BP to think of that as its vividly imprinted in my memory in the stadium that dreary evening.
Most gut wrenching loss besides 79 Sugar Bowl to Bama was the 2005 Michigan game. The extra two seconds added to the clock, the Avant heel/toe out of bounds, Michigan scoring on the last play,coming off the 03-04 losing seasons, etc. Ughh. At Iowa in 2008 sucked too.
yes the Bama 79 game was right in there. Actually, every time I watch the replay, at least one of the goal line plays looked like a score. Even the pass play that got to the goal line was close. in replay, I wonder if we would have gotten a TD.
On second down if Fusina has released the ball sooner OR if Fitzkee had run the pattern a yard deeper, it would have been a TD. The ‘Bama DB made a huge hit and play to prevent the TD.
While I haven’t watched the two runs in a long time, IIRC Suhey broke the plain on the third down play, Guman was stuffed on the fourth down play.
Too bad Fusina didn’t follow Burkhart’s lead from the KU game, he could have walked in.
Respectfully disagree.....that was probably the best team in Toledo history, 10-1.
Bob, this is a great list, particularly for us old timers. I remember vividly all of these games. 1972 stands out for me as I was in attendance both in Knoxville and the Sugar Bowl. Tennessee was excruciating. Their first night game. Down 21-0 at halftime, and we score two quick TD's in the 3rd Qtr. So, I'm thinking we got 'em and Joe pulls the starting lines thinking we'll wear them down. Sort of lost our momentum for just long enough to make a difference. Though, Huff brings us back again and I remember time running out on us at around their 14 yard line. Score there and go for two was all I was thinking. My friend and I were so bummed, we set out on the road and hitchhiked home to Pittsburgh arriving there at 4:00 P.M. Sunday afternoon. Stupid kids, but we made it safely.
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Most PSU fans agree that Suhey was in on 3rd down. Replay from above (cool angle) shows the ball breaking the plane. Fitzkee's reception and failure to immediately turn toward the goal line on 2nd down kept him out of the end zone and down at the one. Guman was stopped short on 4th down.
Joe wanted to throw on 4th, probably leaking the TE out after play action, and was talked out of it by other coaches. Frustrating all around.
Joe would certainly have gone for 2 had we scored. Some time remained, but not much, and both defenses were playing lights out. Most likely woulda been either a 15-14 win and the NC, or a 14-13 loss and maybe even more frustrating.
Funny thing is, even after that stop we got the ball back in excellent field position with time to score. Didn't do anything with that break, and that was it.
Yes, Toledo was really good that season. We lost badly to USC in the opener at the Meadowlands, and that USC team was not good. Losing record, I think. That loss to USC was a worse loss for us than to Toledo that season. Toledo woulda thumped USC, too, imo.
Of course, the Pitt loss (12-0) was worse than both, because Pitt.
Sort of. That was the 12 men on the field penalty on the shanked punt by Bama after that goal line stand. We would have had the ball inside their 30 if not deeper. Instead, they kept the ball. Killer.
The loss on 8/27/2000 to Southern Cal (29-5) probably bothered me less than any other loss because about an hour after the game two young ladies from Guardian Angel Basset Rescue brought me a little girl that I named Bailey (after my niece in Austin, TX).
She was a great little girl that lived to be 14 1/2+. It broke my heart to have to put her down on Valentine’s Day 2015.
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YES. The most breathtaking moments I've spent in Beaver Stadium were in the 4th quarter of the 1982 Nebraska game.
And,
The 1979 Alabama bowl game. The first Alabama TD pass, just before half time, wans't. I saw a new camera angle the next day on Channel 4 Pittsburgh that explicitly showed the ball bounce off the turf before it popped up into the receivers hands. The receiver sold it and fate was set. This was the only time I saw that replay, ever, on a pro Pitt TV station. Shades of OSU pass misreceptions in our future.
Is that your nomination for both categories?
Maybe I am dreaming, but didn’t OSU return the favor with that score flipped the other way around, not too long ago?
This is a great thread, because I am smiling my rear end off as I write my most enjoyable wins
1) 1994 OSU 63-14
2) 4 OT win vs Michigan, 43-40
3) 2019 vs Maryland, 59-0
4) 1999 Pigskin classic vs Arizona
5) 1995 "the snowball game" vs Michigan 27-17
6) 2002 vs Nebraska 40-7
bonus:
2007 Appalachian State vs. Michigan
and of course
1) 1994 OSU 63-14
2) 4 OT win vs Michigan, 43-40
3) 2019 vs Maryland, 59-0
4) 1999 Pigskin classic vs Arizona
5) 1995 "the snowball game" vs Michigan 27-17
6) 2002 vs Nebraska 40-7
bonus:
2007 Appalachian State vs. Michigan
and of course
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I believe that this was the game when we lost Aaron Harris at fullback knee injury? Huge loss for season.
I would have to put 1972 win over Nebraska in there. Loss to USC in Rose Bowl when Barkley was running wild was huge loss for me.
Also, Toledo's RB was Chester Taylor who went on to have a decade long career in the NFL. If losing to Toledo was bad simply because they're in the MAC then I'd say losing to Ohio U. was worse, sanctions or not.
yes, i think the ball may have even been inside the 20. not many people remember that play, but we had another chance. I really think we would have scored on them had we gotten the ball, as they were tired from the previous drive.
and yet many still revere Mills as a great QB. He was the QB every year during the dark days.
I wouldn't call it one of the best wins but when they came back to beat Northwestern in 2005 I feel like it changed everything for the program.
Yep, forgot about that 12 men penalty. Well that penalty worked to our advantage in the 1968(69) Orange Bowl. As I recall Kansas had twelve men on the field for a couple or more plays down near the goal line prior to the touchdown. The refs just didn't notice it until the two point attempt.
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