American college football season
1978 Penn State Nittany Lions football Eastern champion
Conference Independent Ranking Coaches No. 4 AP No. 4 Record 11–1 Head coach Joe Paterno (13th season) Offensive scheme I formation Defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky (2nd season) Base defense 4–3 Captains Home stadium Beaver Stadium Seasons
The 1978 Penn State Nittany Lions football team represented the Pennsylvania State University in the 1978 NCAA Division I-A football season . The team was coached by Joe Paterno and played its home games in Beaver Stadium in University Park, Pennsylvania .
The team was not seen as a favorite in the pre-season to win the national championship .[ 1]
Schedule Date Opponent Rank Site TV Result Attendance Source September 1 at Temple No. 3 W 10–753,103 September 9 Rutgers No. 3 W 26–1077,154 September 16 at No. 6 Ohio State No. 5 ABC W 19–088,202 September 23 SMU No. 3 Beaver Stadium University Park, PA W 26–2177,704 September 30 TCU No. 5 Beaver Stadium University Park, PA W 58–076,832 October 7 at Kentucky No. 5 W 30–058,068 [ 2] October 21 Syracuse No. 2 Beaver Stadium University Park, PA (rivalry ) W 45–1577,827 October 28 at West Virginia No. 2 W 49–2134,010 [ 3] November 4 No. 5 Maryland No. 2 Beaver Stadium University Park, PA (rivalry ) ABC W 27–378,019 [ 4] November 11 NC State No. 2 Beaver Stadium University Park, PA W 19–1077,043 [ 5] November 24 No. 15 Pittsburgh No. 1 Beaver Stadium University Park, PA (rivalry ) ABC W 17–1077,465 January 1, 1979 vs. No. 2 Alabama No. 1 ABC L 7–1476,824 [ 6] HomecomingRankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
Game summaries
Temple #3 Penn State at Temple 1 2 3 4 Total • Penn St 0 0 7 3 10 Temple 0 0 0 7 7
Scoring summary Q3 :56 PSU Booker Moore 26 yard run (Matt Bahr kick)PSU 7–0 Q4 10:49 TEM Zachary Dixon 21 yard pass from Brian Broomell (Firovanti kick) Tie 7–7 Q4 :10 PSU Matt Bahr 23 yard field goal PSU 10–7
[ 7]
Ohio State 1 2 3 4 Total • Penn St 3 0 7 9 19 Ohio St 0 0 0 0 0
Date: September 18Location: Ohio Stadium Game start: 1:00 p.m. ESTElapsed time: 2:48Game attendance: 88,202Game weather: Cloudy; 80 °F (27 °C); wind 10 mph (16 km/h) SWTelevision network: ABC Scoring summary Q1 9:52 PSU Bahr 30 yard field goalPSU 3–0 Q3 4:52 PSU Suhey 3 yard run (Bahr kick)PSU 10–0 Q4 13:12 PSU Bahr 41 yard field goal PSU 13–0 Q4 6:45 PSU Bahr 25 yard field goal PSU 16–0 Q4 2:53 PSU Bahr 30 yard field goal PSU 19–0
[ 8]
Maryland 1 2 3 4 Total Maryland 0 3 0 0 3 • Penn State 3 10 7 7 27
Scoring summary 1 PSU Bahr 33-yard field goal PSU 3-0 2 PSU Fusina 1-yard run (Bahr kick) PSU 10-0 2 MD Loncar 39-yard field goal PSU 10-3 2 PSU Bahr 44-yard field goal PSU 13-3 3 PSU Donovan 63-yard pass from Fusina (Bahr kick) PSU 20-3 4 PSU Moore 4-yard run (Bahr kick) PSU 27-3
[ 9] [ 10]
Syracuse Chuck Fusina threw four touchdown passes, including two to Scott Fitzkee as second-ranked Penn State extended its win streak to 15 games. Fusina finished 15 of 27 for 293 yards.[ 11]
Roster 1978 Penn State Nittany Lions football team roster Players Coaches Offense Defense Special teams Head coach Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt Roster
Awards A football signed by the 1978 Penn State Nittany Lions football team, including Chuck Fusina , Matt Millen , and head coach Joe Paterno . Lombardi Award Maxwell Award Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year
NFL Draft Nine Nittany Lions were drafted in the 1979 NFL draft .
References ^ Pitt Strong Again; Lions Up In Air , web: The Sacramento Bee, 1978, retrieved March 13, 2023 ^ John A. McGill (October 8, 1978). "Lions Maul Sluggish Wildcats 30-0". Sunday Herald-Leader . pp. C1, C7 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Penn State rallies for 49–21 win". The Tampa Tribune . October 29, 1978. Retrieved January 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Penn State destroys Maryland 27–3". Sunday News . November 5, 1978. Retrieved January 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Bahr sparks Penn State". The Kansas City Star . November 12, 1978. Retrieved January 27, 2024 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Hard-hitting defense keys Bama victory". Birmingham Post-Herald . January 2, 1979. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Field goal gives Penn State win." Eugene Register-Guard. 1978 Sept 2. Retrieved 2014-Jan-05. ^ "'Ready' Penn State Stuns No. 6 Bucks." Palm Beach Post. 1978 Sept 17. ^ "Penn State's Defense Smothers Terps." Palm Beach Post. 1978 Nov 5. ^ Underwood, John (November 13, 1978). "A Lionized Defense". Sports Illustrated . p. 18. ^ Ocala Star-Banner. 1978 Oct 22.
Venues Bowls & rivalries Culture & lore People Seasons National championship seasons in bold