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1981 Penn State

10–⁠2, coached by Joe Paterno, finished No. 3 in the AP poll.

Schedule and results

Penn State in 1981, game by game: won vs. Cincinnati 52–0; won at No. 15 Nebraska 30–24; won vs. Temple 30–0; won vs. Boston College 38–7; won at Syracuse 41–16; won vs. West Virginia 30–7; lost at Miami 14–17; won at NC State 22–15; lost vs. No. 6 Alabama 16–31; won vs. Notre Dame 24–21; won at No. 1 Pittsburgh 48–14; won vs. No. 8 USC 26–10+52−15Won 52–0 vs. Cincinnati+52CincinnatiWon 30–24 at No. 15 Nebraska+6No. 15 NebraskaWon 30–0 vs. Temple+30TempleWon 38–7 vs. Boston College+31Boston CollegeWon 41–16 at Syracuse+25SyracuseWon 30–7 vs. West Virginia+23West VirginiaLost 14–17 at Miami-3MiamiWon 22–15 at NC State+7NC StateLost 16–31 vs. No. 6 Alabama-15No. 6 AlabamaWon 24–21 vs. Notre Dame+3Notre DameWon 48–14 at No. 1 Pittsburgh+34No. 1 PittsburghWon 26–10 vs. No. 8 USC+16No. 8 USC
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below; orange marks an upset win.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 12vsCincinnatiW 52–⁠089%
Sep 26at15NebraskaW 30–⁠2440%
Oct 3vsTempleW 30–⁠082%
Oct 10vsBoston CollegeW 38–⁠783%
Oct 17atSyracuseW 41–⁠1672%
Oct 24vsWest VirginiaW 30–⁠775%
Oct 31atMiamiL 14–⁠1761%
Nov 7atNC StateW 22–⁠1573%
Nov 14vs6AlabamaL 16–⁠3155%
Nov 21vsNotre DameW 24–⁠2167%
Nov 28at1PittsburghW 48–⁠1428%
Jan 1Bowls & playoffvs8USCFiesta BowlW 26–⁠1057%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat USC 26–⁠10 in the Fiesta Bowl; No. 3 in the final AP poll.

In program history: The 6th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 139 on file).

AP poll, week by week

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

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 1981.

Consensus All-AmericanSean Farrell, OG

Bobby Dodd Coach of the YearJoe Paterno, coach

Record
10–⁠2
Conference
5–⁠0 first in the Major eastern college football independents (Wikipedia)
AP final
No. 3 peak No. 1
Points
371–⁠162
Coach
Joe Paterno
Elo
1794 +134 this season
SP+ rating
35.0 No. 1 of 132; offense No. 1, defense No. 2
SRS
29.3 No. 1 of 137 in Division I-A
Recruiting class
—
Offensive coordinator
Dick Anderson
Defensive coordinator
Jerry Sandusky
Captains
Sean Farrell, Chet Parlavecchio and Leo Wisniewski
Offense
Pro-style
Defense
4–⁠3

Drafted in 1982

The 1982 draft
Rd 1Mike Munchak OGHouston Oilers
Rd 1Sean Farrell OGTampa Bay Buccaneers
Rd 2Leo Wisniewski DTBaltimore Colts
Rd 2Jim Romano CLos Angeles Raiders
Rd 3Vyto Kab TEPhiladelphia Eagles
Rd 3Paul Lankford DBMiami Dolphins
Rd 5Mike Meade RBGreen Bay Packers
Rd 6Chet Parlavecchio LBGreen Bay Packers