1978 Penn State Nittany Lions football team

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.

1978 Penn State Nittany Lions football
Sugar Bowl, L 7–14 vs. Alabama
ConferenceIndependent
Ranking
CoachesNo. 4
APNo. 4
1978 record11–1
Head coachJoe Paterno (13th season)
Defensive coordinatorJerry Sandusky
Captains
Home stadiumBeaver Stadium
(Capacity: 76,639)
1978 NCAA Division I-A independents football records
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
No. 4 Penn State   –  –   11 –1 –0
North Texas State   –  –   9 –2 –0
East Carolina   –  –   9 –3 –0
Navy   –  –   9 –3 –0
No. 7 Notre Dame   –  –   9 –3 –0
Rutgers   –  –   9 –3 –0
Florida State   –  –   8 –3 –0
Temple   –  –   7 –3 –1
Pittsburgh   –  –   8 –4 –0
Holy Cross   –  –   7 –4 –0
Louisville   –  –   7 –4 –0
UNLV   –  –   7 –4 –0
Southern Miss   –  –   7 –4 –0
Northeast Louisiana   –  –   6 –4 –1
Georgia Tech   –  –   7 –5 –0
Hawaii   –  –   6 –5 –0
Miami   –  –   6 –5 –0
South Carolina   –  –   5 –5 –1
William & Mary   –  –   5 –5 –1
Cincinnati   –  –   5 –6 –0
Villanova   –  –   5 –6 –0
Army   –  –   4 –6 –1
Memphis State   –  –   4 –7 –0
Tulane   –  –   4 –7 –0
Virginia Tech   –  –   4 –7 –0
Air Force   –  –   3 –8 –0
Colgate   –  –   3 –8 –0
Richmond   –  –   3 –8 –0
Syracuse   –  –   3 –8 –0
Illinois State   –  –   2 –9 –0
West Virginia   –  –   2 –9 –0
Boston College   –  –   0 –11 –0
Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule
DateOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendance
September 1at TempleNo. 3
W 10–753,103
September 9RutgersNo. 3
W 26–1077,154
September 16at No. 6 Ohio StateNo. 5
ABCW 19–088,202
September 23SMUNo. 3
  • Beaver Stadium
  • University Park, PA
W 26–2177,704
September 30TCUNo. 5
  • Beaver Stadium
  • University Park, PA
W 58–076,832
October 7at KentuckyNo. 5
W 30–058,068
October 21SyracuseNo. 2
  • Beaver Stadium
  • University Park, PA (rivalry)
W 45–1577,827
October 28at West VirginiaNo. 2
W 49–2134,010
November 4No. 5 MarylandNo. 2
  • Beaver Stadium
  • University Park, PA (rivalry)
ABCW 27–378,019
November 11North Carolina StateNo. 2
  • Beaver Stadium
  • University Park, PA
W 19–1077,043
November 24No. 15 PittsburghNo. 1
  • Beaver Stadium
  • University Park, PA (rivalry)
ABCW 17–1077,465
January 1, 1979vs. No. 2 AlabamaNo. 1
ABCL 7–1476,824
  • Homecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Roster
1978 Penn State Nittany Lions football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos.#NameClass
T 68 Eric Cummingham Sr
WR 19 Tom Donovan Jr
T 71 Keith Dorney Sr
WR 46 Scott Fitzkee Sr
QB 14 Chuck Fusina Sr
RB 24 Mike Guman Jr
TE 85 Vyto Kab Fr
RB 38 Mike Meade Fr
T 70 Irv Pankey Jr
RB 32 Matt Suhey Jr
 Defense
Pos.#NameClass
DB 30 Matt Bradley Fr
DB 25 Tom Bradley Sr
DE 54 Bruce Clark Jr
DE 74 Larry Kubin So
DT 57 Pete Kugler So
LB 56 Lance Mehl Jr
LB 60 Matt Millen Jr
LB 94 Chet Parlavecchio Fr
 Special teams
Pos.#NameClass
K 10 Matt Bahr Sr
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • Injured
  • Redshirt

Roster

Game summaries

Temple
#3 Penn State at Temple
1 234Total
• Penn St 0 073 10
Temple 0 007 7

[1]

Ohio State
1 234Total
• Penn St 3 079 19
Ohio St 0 000 0
  • Date: September 18
  • Location: Ohio Stadium
  • Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST
  • Elapsed time: 2:48
  • Game attendance: 88,202
  • Game weather: Cloudy; 80°F; wind 10 SW
  • Television network: ABC

[2]

Maryland
1 234Total
Maryland 0 300 3
• Penn State 3 1077 27

[3][4]

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.[5]

Post season

NFL Draft

Nine Nittany Lions were drafted in the 1979 NFL Draft.

RoundPickOverallNamePositionTeam
1st1010Keith DorneyOffensive tackleDetroit Lions
4th1496Eric CunninghamOffensive guardNew York Jets
5th16126Scott FitzkeeWide receiverPhiladelphia Eagles
5th23133Chuck FusinaQuarterbackTampa Bay Buccaneers
6th8145Bob TorreyRunningbackNew York Giants
6th28165Matt BahrKickerPittsburgh Steelers
7th17182Rich MilotLinebackerWashington Redskins
8th4196Chuck CorrealCenterPhiladelphia Eagles
10th6265Tony Petruccio–San Diego Chargers

Awards
A football signed by the 1978 Penn State Nittany Lions football team, including Chuck Fusina, Matt Millen, and head coach Joe Paterno.
  • Bruce Clark
Lombardi Award
Maxwell Award
Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year
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References
  1. "Field goal gives Penn State win." Eugene Register-Guard. 1978 Sept 2. Retrieved 2014-Jan-05.
  2. "'Ready' Penn State Stuns No. 6 Bucks." Palm Beach Post. 1978 Sept 17.
  3. "Penn State's Defense Smothers Terps." Palm Beach Post. 1978 Nov 5.
  4. Underwood, John (November 13, 1978). "A Lionized Defense". Sports Illustrated. p. 18.
  5. Ocala Star-Banner. 1978 Oct 22.
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