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1986 Penn State Nittany Lions football
Consensus national champion
Fiesta Bowl champion
Eastern champion
Fiesta Bowl, W 14–10 vs. Miami (FL)
ConferenceIndependent
Ranking
CoachesNo. 1
APNo. 1
Record12–0
Head coach
Offensive coordinator Fran Ganter (3rd season)
Offensive scheme Pro-style
Defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky (10th season)
Base defense 4–3
Home stadium Beaver Stadium
Seasons
←  1985
1987 →
1986 Major eastern college football independents records
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 1 Penn State $ 6 – 0 – 0 12 – 0 – 0
No. 19 Boston College 3 – 2 – 0 9 – 3 – 0
Syracuse 3 – 3 – 0 5 – 6 – 0
Temple 2 – 3 – 0 6 – 5 – 0
Pittsburgh 2 – 3 – 0 5 – 5 – 1
Rutgers 2 – 4 – 0 5 – 5 – 1
West Virginia 1 – 4 – 0 4 – 7 – 0
Rankings from AP Poll
1986 NCAA Division I-A independents football records
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 1 Penn State   –   –   12 – 0 – 0
No. 2 Miami (FL)   –   –   11 – 1 – 0
No. 20 Virginia Tech   –   –   9 – 2 – 1
No. 19 Boston College   –   –   9 – 3 – 0
Tulsa   –   –   7 – 4 – 0
Florida State   –   –   7 – 4 – 1
Army   –   –   6 – 5 – 0
Southwestern Louisiana   –   –   6 – 5 – 0
Southern Miss   –   –   6 – 5 – 0
Temple   –   –   6 – 5 – 0
Pittsburgh   –   –   5 – 5 – 1
Rutgers   –   –   5 – 5 – 1
Cincinnati   –   –   5 – 6 – 0
Notre Dame   –   –   5 – 6 – 0
Syracuse   –   –   5 – 6 – 0
South Carolina   –   –   3 – 6 – 2
Tulane   –   –   4 – 7 – 0
West Virginia   –   –   4 – 7 – 0
Louisville   –   –   3 – 8 – 0
Navy   –   –   3 – 8 – 0
Wichita State   –   –   3 – 8 – 0
East Carolina   –   –   2 – 9 – 0
Northern Illinois   –   –   2 – 9 – 0
Memphis State   –   –   1 – 10 – 0
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1986 Penn State Nittany Lions football team represented the Pennsylvania State University as an independent during the 1986 NCAA Division I-A football season. Led by 21st-year head coach Joe Paterno, the Nittany Lions compiled a record of 12–0. Penn State defeated the Miami Hurricanes, 14–10, in the 1987 Fiesta Bowl to win Paterno's second consensus national championship. [1] The team was named national champion by AP, Billingsley, FB News, FW, Matthews, NCF, NFF, Sporting News, UPI, and USA/CNN, while named co-champion by FACT, Sagarin (ELO-Chess). [2]

Schedule

DateTimeOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
September 67:00 p.m. TempleNo. 6
 TCSW 45–1585,732
September 207:00 p.m.at Boston CollegeNo. 5
 ESPNW 26–1442,329
September 271:30 p.m. East CarolinaNo. 7
  • Beaver Stadium
  • University Park, PA
TCSW 42–1784,774 [3]
October 412:20 p.m. RutgersNo. 5
  • Beaver Stadium
  • University Park, PA
TCSW 31–684,000
October 1112:20 p.m. CincinnatiNo. 5
  • Beaver Stadium
  • University Park, PA
TCSW 23–1784,812
October 181:30 p.m. SyracusedaggerNo. 6
  • Beaver Stadium
  • University Park, PA ( rivalry)
TCSW 42–385,512
October 253:30 p.m.at No. 2 AlabamaNo. 6
 ABCW 23–360,210 [4]
November 17:30 p.m.at West VirginiaNo. 2
ESPNW 19–059,184 [5]
November 81:00 p.m. MarylandNo. 2
  • Beaver Stadium
  • University Park, PA ( rivalry)
TCSW 17–1585,561 [6]
November 153:30 p.m.at Notre DameNo. 3
ABCW 24–1959,075
November 2212:20 p.m. PittsburghNo. 2
  • Beaver Stadium
  • University Park, PA ( rivalry)
TCSW 34–1485,722
January 2, 19878:00 p.m.vs. No. 1 Miami (FL)No. 2
 NBCW 14–1073,098

Rankings

See also: 1986 NCAA Division I-A football rankings

AP Poll

Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Final
6 5 5 7 5 5 6 6 2 2 3 2 2 2 1

UPI Poll

Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Final
5 5 6 6 5 4 5 5 3 2 3 2 2 2 1

Game summaries

Temple

See also: 1986 Temple Owls football team
Temple vs. Penn State – Game summary (first night game in Beaver Stadium History)
Period 1 2 34Total
Temple 0 6 0915
#6 Penn State 21 3 14745

at Beaver Stadium

Game information

Boston College

See also: 1986 Boston College Eagles football team
Penn State vs. Boston College – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
#5 Penn State 9 3 7726
Boston College 0 0 7714

at Sullivan Stadium

Game information

East Carolina

See also: 1986 East Carolina Pirates football team
East Carolina vs. Penn State – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
East Carolina 0 0 31417
#7 Penn State 14 21 0742

at Beaver Stadium

  • Date: September 27
  • Game time: 1:30 PM EDT
  • Game attendance: 84,774
  • TV announcers ( TCS): Stan Savran, George Paterno
Game information

Rutgers

See also: 1986 Rutgers Scarlet Knights football team
Rutgers vs. Penn State – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Rutgers 0 0 066
#5 Penn State 14 3 7731

at Beaver Stadium

  • Date: October 4
  • Game time: 12:20 PM EDT
  • Game attendance: 84,000
  • TV announcers ( TCS): Stan Savran, George Paterno
Game information

Cincinnati

See also: 1986 Cincinnati Bearcats football team
Cincinnati vs. Penn State – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Cincinnati 0 7 7317
#5 Penn State 0 14 0923

at Beaver Stadium

  • Date: October 11
  • Game time: 12:20 PM EDT
  • Game attendance: 84,812
  • TV announcers ( TCS): Stan Savran, George Paterno
Game information

Syracuse

See also: 1986 Syracuse Orangemen football team and Penn State–Syracuse football rivalry
Syracuse vs. Penn State – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Syracuse 0 0 033
#6 Penn State 17 9 21754

at Beaver Stadium

  • Date: October 18
  • Game time: 1:30 PM EDT
  • Game attendance: 85,512
  • TV announcers ( TCS): Stan Savran, George Paterno
Game information

#2 Alabama

See also: 1986 Alabama Crimson Tide football team and Alabama–Penn State football rivalry
Penn State vs. Alabama – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
#6 Penn State 0 14 3623
#2 Alabama 3 0 003

at Bryant–Denny Stadium

Game information

West Virginia

See also: 1986 West Virginia Mountaineers football team
Penn State vs. West Virginia – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
#2 Penn State 7 6 6019
West Virginia 0 0 000

at Mountaineer Field

Game information

Maryland

See also: 1986 Maryland Terrapins football team and Maryland–Penn State football rivalry
Maryland vs. Penn State – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Maryland 0 0 31215
#2 Penn State 0 7 01017

at Beaver Stadium

  • Date: November 8
  • Game time: 1:00 PM EST
  • Game attendance: 85,651
  • TV announcers ( TCS): Stan Savran, George Paterno
Game information

Notre Dame

See also: 1986 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team
Penn State vs. Notre Dame – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
#3 Penn State 7 3 7724
Notre Dame 0 6 7619

at Notre Dame Stadium

Game information

Pittsburgh

See also: 1986 Pittsburgh Panthers football team
Pittsburgh vs. Penn State – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Pittsburgh 7 0 0714
#2 Penn State 10 7 10734

at Beaver Stadium

  • Date: November 22
  • Game time: 12:20 PM EST
  • Game attendance: 85,722
  • TV announcers ( TCS): Stan Savran, George Paterno
Game information

#1 Miami (FL) (Sunkist Fiesta Bowl)

See also: 1986 Miami Hurricanes football team and 1987 Fiesta Bowl
Miami (FL) vs. Penn State – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
#1 Miami (FL) 0 7 0310
#2 Penn State 0 7 0714

at Sun Devil Stadium

Game information

Roster

1986 Penn State Nittany Lions football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos. # Name Class
WR 9 Mike Alexander Jr
OT 74 Stan Clayton Jr
G 57 Chris Conlin Sr
RB 42 D. J. Dozier Jr
C 78 Roger Duffy Fr
G 54 Mitch Frerotte Sr
FB 27 John Hornyak Sr
FB 44 Tim Manoa Sr
G 59 Dan Morgan Sr
TE 89 Bob Mrosko So
TE 88 Paul Pomfret Jr
C 56 Keith Radecic Sr
WR 6 Ray Roundtree Jr
QB 14 John Shaffer Sr
TE 91 Brian Siverling Sr
RB 35 Steve Smith Sr
G 79 Dave Szott Fr
RB 32 Blair Thomas So
WR 5 Michael Timpson So
G 66 Steve Wisniewski So
C 72 Mike Wolf Jr
Defense
Pos. # Name Class
LB 35 Trey Bauer Jr
CB 16 Duffy Cobbs Sr
CB/S 43 Andre Collins Fr
LB 31 Shane Conlan Sr
LB 90 Pete Giftopoulos Jr
LB 53 Don Graham Sr
S 2 Stu Helgeson Jr
H 3 Marques Henderson Jr
S 22 Ray Isom Sr
LB 55 Tim Johnson Sr
LB 52 Gregg Johns Jr
LB 84 Keith Karpinski Jr
DB 21 Sid Lewis Sr
LB 92 Quintus McDonald So
LB 33 John Sweenely So
CB 19 Gary Wilkerson So
Special teams
Pos. # Name Class
P 11 John Bruno Sr
PK 10 Massimo Manca Sr
K 2 Ray Tarasi Fr
SN 68 Greg Truitt Jr

[7] [8]


Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • Injured Injured
  • Redshirt Redshirt

Awards

Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year
Paul "Bear" Bryant Award

NFL Draft

Thirteen Nittany Lions were drafted in the 1987 NFL Draft.

Round Pick Overall Name Position Team
1st 8 8 Shane Conlan Linebacker Buffalo Bills
1st 14 14 D.J. Dozier Running back Minnesota Vikings
3rd 24 80 Tim Manoa Running back Cleveland Browns
3rd 25 81 Steve Smith Running back Los Angeles Raiders
4th 1 84 Don Graham Linebacker Tampa Bay Buccaneers
5th 14 126 John Bruno Punter St. Louis Cardinals
5th 20 132 Chris Conlin Offensive guard Miami Dolphins
6th 1 141 Tim Johnson Defensive end Pittsburgh Steelers
6th 22 162 Bob White Defensive line San Francisco 49ers
8th 27 222 Dan Morgan Offensive guard Denver Broncos
9th 24 247 Bob Ontko Linebacker Indianapolis Colts
10th 17 268 Sid Lewis Defensive back New York Jets
11th 7 286 Brian Siverling Tight End Detroit Lions

Media

Radio

Flagship station Play-by-play Color commentator Sideline reporter Studio host
WMAJ AM 1450 Gil Santos
Lanny Frattare

References

  1. ^ "Penn State Yearly Results (1985–1989)". College Football Data Warehouse. David DeLassus. Retrieved July 26, 2015.[ permanent dead link]
  2. ^ 2018 NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association. August 2018. p. 114. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  3. ^ "Paterno frets about easy win". The Times-Tribune. September 28, 1986. Retrieved March 5, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "Move over Miami: State bombs Bama". Sunday News. October 27, 1986. Retrieved February 20, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "Lions' defense stifles W. Virginia". The Daily News. November 2, 1986. Retrieved January 31, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Terps wage battle but lose to Penn St". Florence Morning News. November 9, 1986. Retrieved February 1, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ "Home".
  8. ^ "ArchivesSpace Public Interface | Archival Collections".
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