1973 Penn State Nittany Lions football team

1973 Penn State Nittany Lions football
Orange Bowl, W 16–9 vs. LSU
Conference Independent
Ranking
Coaches No. 5
AP No. 5
1973 record 12–0
Head coach Joe Paterno (8th year)
Captain John Cappelletti
Captain Randy Crowder
Captain Mark Markovich
Captain Ed O'Neil
Home stadium Beaver Stadium
(Capacity: 57,538)

Penn State's third undefeated season under Joe Paterno was led by John Cappelletti who would become the first Penn State player to win the Heisman Trophy.

Schedule

Date Opponent# Rank# Site TV Result Attendance
September 15 at Stanford No. 7 Stanford StadiumStanford, CA ABC W 20–6   57,000
September 22 at Navy No. 7 Navy-Marine Corps Memorial StadiumAnnapolis, MD W 39–0   28,383
September 29 Iowadagger No. 6 Beaver StadiumUniversity Park, PA W 27–8   59,980
October 6 at Air Force No. 7 Falcon StadiumColorado Springs, CO ABC W 19–9   37,077
October 13 Army No. 7 Beaver Stadium • University Park, PA W 54–3   58,194
October 20 at Syracuse No. 5 Archbold StadiumSyracuse, NY (Rivalry) W 49–6   27,595
October 27 West Virginia No. 5 Beaver Stadium • University Park, PA (Rivalry) W 62–14   59,138
November 3 at Maryland No. 6 Byrd StadiumCollege Park, MD (Rivalry) W 42–22   44,135
November 10 NC State No. 6 Beaver Stadium • University Park, PA W 35–29   59,424
November 17 Ohio No. 6 Beaver Stadium • University Park, PA W 49–10   51,804
November 24 No. 20 Pittsburgh No. 6 Beaver Stadium • University Park, PA (Rivalry) W 35–13   56,600
January 1 vs. No. 13 LSU No. 6 Miami Orange BowlMiami, FL (Orange Bowl) NBC W 16–9   60,477
*Non-conference game. daggerHomecoming. #Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Game summaries

Navy

1 2 34Total
#7 Penn State 7 20 10239
Navy 0 0 000

at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, Annapolis, MD

  • Date: Saturday, September 22
  • Game attendance: 28,383
  • Recap

Penn State capitalized on a fumble and two short punts to score three second-quarter touchdowns and break the game wide open against Navy. The Nittany Lions opened scoring with just one second left in the first as QB Tom Shuman hit SE Gary Heyman for a touchdown to cap an 88-yard drive. On the first play after the ensuing kickoff, E Greg Murphy recovered a fumble by RB Bob Jackson at the Navy 41, and the Lions took two-and-a-half minutes and five plays to score again. Penn State scored on two more quick drives of 60 and 51 yards following short punts into a stiff wind by John Stufflebeem. The Lions added a field goal by Chris Bahr midway through the third and backup QB John Clark capped a 56-yard drive with a keeper to put Penn State ahead 37-0. The final points of the contest came when a snap from Navy's center sailed over Stufflebeem's head and out of the end zone for a safety.[1]

Syracuse

1 234Total
Penn St 3 19216 49
Syracuse 0 060 6

[2]

Statistics

Passing

Player Comp Att Yards TD INT
Shuman 83 161 1,375 13 5
Barvinchak 8 15 163 1 2
Cappelletti 1 2 17 0 0
Clark 1 4 −3 0 0
Petchel 0 1 0 0 0

[3]

Post season

NFL Draft

Ten Nittany Lions were drafted in the 1974 NFL Draft.

Round Pick Overall Name Position Team
1st 8 8 Ed O'Neil Linebacker Detroit Lions
1st 11 11 John Cappelletti Running back Los Angeles Rams
2nd 1 27 Doug Allen Linebacker Buffalo Bills
2nd 15 41 Charlie Getty Offensive tackle Kansas City Chiefs
2nd 17 43 Mark Markovich Center San Diego Chargers
5th 2 106 Gary Hayman Running back Buffalo Bills
6th 6 136 Randy Crowder Defensive tackle Miami Dolphins
9th 9 217 Phil LaPorta Offensive tackle New Orleans Saints
10th 22 256 Chuck Herd Cincinnati Bengals
12th 8 294 Tom Hull Linebacker San Francisco 49ers

Awards

Heisman Trophy
Maxwell Award
Walter Camp Award

References

  1. "Nittany Lions Roar Past Outclassed Midshipmen." Palm Beach Post. p. 84. 1973 Sep 23.
  2. Eugene Register-Guard. 1973 Oct 21.
  3. Nittany Anthology
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