1968 Penn State Nittany Lions football team

The 1968 Penn State Nittany Lions football team represented Pennsylvania State University as an independents the 1968 NCAA University Division football season. Led by third-year head coach Joe Paterno, the Nittany Lions compiled a perfect record of 11–0 with a win in the Orange Bowl over Kansas. The team played home games at Beaver Stadium in University Park, Pennsylvania.

1968 Penn State Nittany Lions football
Eastern champion Orange Bowl champion
Orange Bowl, W 15–14 vs. Kansas
Conference	Independent
Ranking
Coaches	No. 3
AP	No. 2
Record	11–0
Head coach	Joe Paterno (3rd season)
Offensive scheme	I formation
Defensive coordinator	Jim O'Hora (3rd season)
Base defense	4–3
Captains	John Kulka Mike Reid Steve Smear
Home stadium	Beaver Stadium
Seasons ← 1967 1969 →

1968 NCAA University Division independents football records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 2 Penn State			–					11	–	0	–	0
Rutgers			–					8	–	2	–	0
West Texas State			–					8	–	2	–	0
No. 5 Notre Dame			–					7	–	2	–	1
Florida State			–					8	–	3	–	0
Air Force			–					7	–	3	–	0
Army			–					7	–	3	–	0
Buffalo			–					7	–	3	–	0
No. 18 Houston			–					6	–	2	–	2
Utah State			–					7	–	3	–	0
Boston College			–					7	–	3	–	0
West Virginia			–					7	–	3	–	0
Virginia Tech			–					7	–	4	–	0
Syracuse			–					6	–	4	–	0
Villanova			–					6	–	4	–	0
Xavier			–					6	–	4	–	0
Colgate			–					5	–	5	–	0
Dayton			–					5	–	5	–	0
Miami (FL)			–					5	–	5	–	0
New Mexico State			–					5	–	5	–	0
Georgia Tech			–					4	–	6	–	0
Southern Miss			–					4	–	6	–	0
Holy Cross			–					3	–	6	–	1
San Jose State			–					3	–	7	–	0
Navy			–					2	–	8	–	0
Tulane			–					2	–	8	–	0
Pittsburgh			–					1	–	9	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1968 team was Paterno's first perfect season. Despite going 11–0, the Nittany Lions finished behind 10–0 Ohio State in the final AP poll (conducted after bowl season), and behind Ohio State and 9–0–1 USC in the final Coaches Poll (conducted before bowl season).

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 21		Navy	No. 10	Beaver Stadium University Park, PA		W 31–6	49,273
September 28		Kansas State	No. 4	Beaver Stadium University Park, PA		W 25–9	45,024
October 5		at West Virginia	No. 3	Mountaineer Field Morgantown, WV (rivalry)		W 31–20	34,500	[1]
October 12		at UCLA	No. 3	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA	ABC	W 21–6	35,772
October 26		at Boston College	No. 4	Alumni Stadium Chestnut Hill, MA		W 29–0	25,272
November 2	1:00 p.m.	Army	No. 4	Beaver Stadium University Park, PA		W 28–24	49,653
November 9		Miami (FL)	No. 4	Beaver Stadium University Park, PA		W 22–7	49,863–50,132
November 16		at Maryland	No. 3	Byrd Stadium College Park, MD (rivalry)		W 57–13	30,000	[2]
November 23		at Pittsburgh	No. 3	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA (rivalry)		W 65–9	31,224
December 7		Syracuse	No. 3	Beaver Stadium University Park, PA (rivalry)	ABC	W 30–12	41,393
January 1, 1969		vs. No. 6 Kansas	No. 3	Miami Orange Bowl Miami, FL (Orange Bowl)	NBC	W 15–14	77,719
Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

Game summaries

Miami (FL)

See also: 1968 Miami Hurricanes football team

Vs. Kansas (Orange Bowl)

Main article: 1969 Orange Bowl

See also: 1968 Kansas Jayhawks football team

Roster

1968 Penn State Nittany Lions football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class WR 80 Leon Angevine Sr OT 73 Dave Bradley Sr QB 22 Chuck Burkhart Sr WR 23 Bob Campbell Sr QB 25 Mike Cooper So WR 88 Greg Edmonds So RB Fran Ganter So G 63 Tom Jackson Jr C 56 Warren Koegel So RB 24 Charlie Pittman Jr TE 82 Ted Kwalick Sr G 60 Charlie Zapiec So	Defense Pos. # Name Class DT 72 John Ebersole Jr LB 33 Jack Ham So LB 51 Gary Hull So DE 15 Mark Koiwai So LB 35 Dennis Onkotz Jr DT 68 Mike Reid Jr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class	Head coach Joe Paterno Coordinators/assistant coaches Earl Bruce Joe McMullen Jim O'Hora Frank Patrick Bob Phillips Dan Radakovich George Welsh J. T. White Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt Roster

After the season

1969 NFL/AFL draft

Five Nittany Lions were drafted in the 1969 NFL/AFL draft.

Round	Pick	Overall	Name	Position	Team
1st	7	7	Ted Kwalick	Tight end	San Francisco 49ers
2nd	12	38	Dave Bradley	Offensive guard	Green Bay Packers
4th	4	82	Bob Campbell	Wide receiver	Pittsburgh Steelers
7th	18	174	John Kulka	Offensive guard	Miami Dolphins
15th	3	367	Leon Angevine	Running back/Wide receiver	Philadelphia Eagles