AHSFHS.org

Search Site

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 <-- 1972 <- 1973 -> 1974 --> 2024

1973 Season Highlights

Joe Paterno enters his 8th season as Head Coach at Penn State.

1973 Season

Date	Opponent	Score
Sat., Sep. 15	@ Stanford	20	6	W
Sat., Sep. 22	@ Navy	39	0	W
Sat., Sep. 29	vs. Iowa	27	8	W
Sat., Oct. 6	@ Air Force	19	9	W
Sat., Oct. 13	vs. Army	54	3	W
Sat., Oct. 20	@ Syracuse	49	6	W
Sat., Oct. 27	vs. West Virginia	62	14	W
Sat., Nov. 3	@ Maryland	42	22	W
Sat., Nov. 10	vs. North Carolina State	35	29	W
Sat., Nov. 17	vs. Ohio	49	10	W
Sat., Nov. 24	vs. Pittsburgh	35	13	W
Tue., Jan. 1	Louisiana State	16	9	W	@ Miami, FL	Orange Bowl

1973 Season Totals
Record	12-0
Points Scored	447
Scoring Average	37.3
Points Allowed	129
Defense Average	10.8
Opponents Record	62-70
Conference Record	0-0
Home Record	6-0
Away Record	5-0

1973 NCAA Final Rankings
Rank	Record	Source
5	12-0-0	AP
5	11-0-0	Coaches
5	11-0-0	UPI

1973 Independent- Standings
	Season			Bowls	Conference
Team	W/L/T	PF	PA		W/L/T	PF	PA	Coach
Louisiana Monroe	3-5-2	133	222					Ollie Keller
Penn State	12-0	447	129	Won 16-9				Joe Paterno
Houston	11-1	363	142	Won 47-7				Bill Yeoman
Notre Dame	11-0	382	89	Won 24-23				Ara R. Parseghian
Temple	9-1	353	167					Wayne Hardin
Tulane	9-3	228	194	Lost 7-47				Bennie Ellender
Nevada Las Vegas	8-3	304	151					Ron Meyer
Boston College	7-4	311	174					Joseph Joe Yukica
Nevada	7-4	295	143					Jerry Scattine
South Carolina	7-4	347	261					Paul Dietzel
Utah State	7-4	230	202					Phil Krueger
Air Force	6-4	223	239					Ben Martin
Pittsburgh	6-5-1	225	211	Lost 7-28				Johnny Majors
Southern Mississippi	6-4-1	227	166					P.W. Bear Underwood
West Virginia	6-5	212	266					Bobby Bowden
Georgia Tech	5-6	192	211					Bill Fulcher
Miami	5-6	163	240					Peter R. Elliot
Cincinnati	4-7	210	109					Tony Mason
Marshall	4-7	212	288					Jack Lengyel
Navy	4-7	221	232					George Welsh
James Madison	3-5	149	164					Challace McMillin
Liberty	3-3	145	115					Lee Royer
Syracuse	2-9	129	288					Floyd B. Ben Schwartzwalder
Virginia Tech	2-9	223	380					Charlie Coffey
Army	0-10	67	382					Tom Cahill
Florida State	0-11	98	331					Larry Jones

1973 All American Awards
Player	Position	Class	Ht.	Wt.	Award	Team	Source
Coming Someday

1973 All Independent Conference Players
Player	Position	Class	Ht.	Wt.	Team	Source
Coming Someday

Some records may be incomplete.

Great Moments in College Football History

The first bowl game, later known as The Rose Bowl, was played on January 1st, 1902 between the Michigan Wolverines and Stanford Cardinals. Michigan won 49-0.