CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

1974 Penn State

10–⁠2, coached by Joe Paterno, finished No. 7 in the AP poll.

Schedule and results

Penn State in 1974, game by game: won vs. No. 20 Stanford 24–20; lost vs. Navy 6–7; won at Iowa 27–0; won at Army 21–14; won vs. Wake Forest 55–0; won vs. Syracuse 30–14; won at West Virginia 21–12; won vs. No. 15 Maryland 24–17; lost at NC State 7–12; won vs. Ohio 35–16; won at No. 18 Pittsburgh 31–10; won vs. No. 12 Baylor 41–20+55−5Won 24–20 vs. No. 20 Stanford+4No. 20 StanfordLost 6–7 vs. Navy-1NavyWon 27–0 at Iowa+27IowaWon 21–14 at Army+7ArmyWon 55–0 vs. Wake Forest+55Wake ForestWon 30–14 vs. Syracuse+16SyracuseWon 21–12 at West Virginia+9West VirginiaWon 24–17 vs. No. 15 Maryland+7No. 15 MarylandLost 7–12 at NC State-5NC StateWon 35–16 vs. Ohio+19OhioWon 31–10 at No. 18 Pittsburgh+21No. 18 PittsburghWon 41–20 vs. No. 12 Baylor+21No. 12 Baylor
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 14vs20StanfordW 24–⁠2075%
Sep 21vsNavyL 6–⁠784%
Sep 28atIowaW 27–⁠082%
Oct 5atArmyW 21–⁠1487%
Oct 12vsWake ForestW 55–⁠094%
Oct 19vsSyracuseW 30–⁠1490%
Oct 26atWest VirginiaW 21–⁠1273%
Nov 2vs15MarylandW 24–⁠1772%
Nov 9atNC StateL 7–⁠1261%
Nov 16vsOhioW 35–⁠1683%
Nov 28at18PittsburghW 31–⁠1063%
Jan 1Bowls & playoffvs12BaylorCotton BowlW 41–⁠2072%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Baylor 41–⁠20 in the Cotton Bowl; No. 7 in the final AP poll.

In program history: The 12th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 139 on file).

AP poll, week by week

  1. Wk 1: 8
  2. Wk 2: 8
  3. Wk 3: 8
  4. Wk 4: 19
  5. Wk 5: 15
  6. Wk 6: 15
  7. Wk 7: 11
  8. Wk 8: 10
  9. Wk 9: 10
  10. Wk 10: 7
  11. Wk 11: 11
  12. Wk 12: 10
  13. Wk 13: 10
  14. Wk 14: 7
  15. Final: 7

Players on this team

Before 2004 our records hold honors and the draft; these are the players whose college years here, from their Wikipedia articles or their honors, include 1974.

Consensus All-AmericanMike Hartenstine, DT

Record
10–⁠2
Conference
—
AP final
No. 7 peak No. 7
Points
322–⁠142
Coach
Joe Paterno
Elo
1767 +65 this season
SP+ rating
16.8 No. 19 of 124; offense No. 31, defense No. 19
SRS
16.3 No. 15 of 129 major-college teams
Recruiting class
—
Defensive coordinator
Jim O’Hora
Captains
Jack Baiorunos and Jim Bradley
Offense
I formation
Defense
4–⁠3

Drafted in 1975

The 1975 draft
Rd 2Mike Hartenstine DTChicago Bears
Rd 4John Nessel OGAtlanta Falcons
Rd 4Tom Donchez RBBuffalo Bills
Rd 6Tom Shuman QBCincinnati Bengals
Rd 7Chris Devlin LBCincinnati Bengals