About…Ohio State

This post was published 4 months 15 days ago so the points made in the article may be outdated.

Penn State hosts Ohio State this weekend in the premiere Beaver Stadium matchup of the 2009 season.  Last year, the Nittany Lions defeated the Buckeyes at Ohio Stadium for the first time in its history as a member of the Big Ten conference, 13-6.

Milestone

Saturday’s game is the 300^th at Beaver Stadium in its fifty year history.  One of college football’s most iconic venues, Beaver Stadium is celebrating its 50th year as the home field for Penn State football. Beaver Stadium will host its 300th game on Saturday, when Ohio State visits for the always highly-anticipated clash between the border rivals. Since it hosted its first game on Sept. 17, 1960, a 20-0 victory over Boston University, the Nittany

Lion faithful have witnessed 241 wins and cheered on 81 first team All-Americans and teams that have captured two national championships, three Big Ten titles and won 25 bowl games since 1960. Boasting a seating capacity of 107,282, Beaver Stadium is the largest stadium in the nation. Featuring a student section that numbers more than 21,000 strong, Beaver Stadium is home to “The Greatest Show in College Football” on Saturdays during the fall.

Beaver Stadium Milestone Games:

1st game, Sept. 17, 1960 – W, 20-0 vs. Boston

50th game, Oct. 17, 1970 – L, 24-7 vs. Syracuse

100th game, Nov. 11, 1978 – W, 19-10 vs. North Carolina State

150th game, Oct. 18, 1986 – W, 42-3 vs. Syracuse

200th game, Nov. 19, 1994 – W, 45-17 vs. Northwestern

250th game, Nov. 2, 2002 – W, 18-7 vs. Illinois

300th game, Nov. 7, 2009 – vs. Ohio State

No lights

Thanks to an obscure Big Ten rule, no conference games in November can occur in prime time.  Therefore, this year’s game (which is at 3:30 pm) and next year’s game (which is on November 13, 2010) cannot be played in prime time.  The games in 2011 and 2012, however will return to October.

Both terrific programs

The Nittany Lions and Buckeyes rank among the nation’s most tradition-laden and successful programs. Penn State and Ohio State are among the top 10 in all-time victories and winning percentage and are two of only seven Football Bowl Subdivision programs with at least 800 all-time wins. The Nittany Lions are sixth in victories with 808 and 11th in winning percentage at 68.9, having compiled a 808-350-42 record in their 123rd season. The Buckeyes are fifth in victories with 814 and fifth in winning percentage at 71.4, having compiled an 815-308-53 mark in their 120th season. In post season games, Penn State is eighth in appearances (41), third in wins (26) and third in winning percentage (65.8) among schools with at least 10 bowl victories. Ohio State is tied for ninth in appearances (40) and is tied for 15th in bowl wins (18).

The Penn State-Ohio State series began in 1912 and is tied, 12-12. The teams met eight times prior to Penn State joining the Big Ten, with the Nittany Lions posting a 6-2 record, including a 5-1 mark ingames in Columbus prior to 1993. The home team has won 12 of the 16 meetings since the Nittany Lions began Big Ten play in 1993, but the visiting team has won the last two contests. Penn State won, 13-6, last year at Ohio Stadium. The squads next meet Nov. 13, 2010 in Columbus.

LAST MEETING – 2008

Penn State scored 10 points in the final 6:25 and stifled the Ohio State offense to record a thrilling 13-6 win over the No. 10 Buckeyes on Oct. 25, 2008 before an Ohio Stadium record crowd of 105,711. The come-from-behind victory lifted the Lions to 9-0 for the 10th time under Joe Paterno. The Penn State defense was superlative, holding Ohio State to a pair of field goals and its fewest points at home since a 6-0 loss to Wisconsin in 1982. The Nittany Lions limited the Buckeyes to just 61 rushing yards on 31 carries. Ohio State’s Chris Wells entered the game averaging 123.8 ypg, but was held to 55 yards on 22 carries. QB Terrelle Pryor gained six yards on nine carries. The Nittany Lions held Ohio State to 287 total yards and forced two turnovers. Penn State did not have any penalties or turnovers in the game, marking the first time the Lions did not have a penalty in the Big Ten era. Senior safety Mark Rubin made the play of the game. He recorded a career-high 11 tackles (9 solo) and forced Pryor to fumble in the fourth quarter, which was recovered by Navorro Bowman on the OSU 38 with 10:38 to play. Pat Devlin scored with 6:25 to play to take the lead and Lydell Sargeant’s end zone interception sealed it in the final minute.

NUMEROUS TIGHT GAMES IN SERIES

Penn State and Ohio State have played 24 times and 11 of the contests have been decided by eight points or less, including five of the last eight. The Nittany Lions own a 6-5 advantage in games decided by eight points or less. The 2001, ‘02 and ‘03 clashes between the border rivals were determined by a combined nine points, the 2005 game was a 17-10 win by Penn State and last year the Lions prevailed, 13-6:

2001 - Zack Mills rallied Penn State from a 27-9 deficit, as the Nittany Lions scored the final 20 points to post a 29-27 win on Oct. 27, 2001 in State College. The win moved Joe Paterno past Paul “Bear” Bryant into the career victories lead among major college coaches with 324. Mills set a school record with 418 yards of total offense.

2002 - The Penn State defense did not allow a touchdown, but Ohio State posted a hard-fought 13-7 win on Oct. 26, 2002 to remain unbeaten. The Buckeyes returned an interception for a touchdown and kicked two field goals to overcome the Nittany Lions’ 7-0 lead. Penn State limited OSU to 253 yards and forced four turnovers.

2003 - The Buckeyes rallied for a dramatic 21-20 win in Beaver Stadium on Nov. 1, 2003. A Zack Mills to Sean McHugh touchdown pass, a 78-yard interception return by cornerback Alan Zemaitis and 42 and 48-yard field goals by David Kimball had Penn State ahead for most of the game. But, No. 8 Ohio State scored on a five-yard pass from Scott McMullen to Michael Jenkins with 1:35 to play to take the lead. Mills got the Lions to the OSU 43 without any timeouts, but Kimball’s 60-yard field goal attempt on the final play was just wide and a couple of yards short.

2005 - Penn State took a 14-3 second quarter lead and shut out No. 6 Ohio State in the second half to earn a pulsating 17-10 victory in front of an electric crowd of 109,839 in Beaver Stadium on October 8, 2005. The win was Penn State’s first over a top 10 team since beating No. 8 Nebraska in 2002 and OSU became the highest rated team the Lions had beaten since whipping No. 4 Arizona in 1999. Two of the nation’s premier defenses slugged it out, with the Nittany Lions holding the Buckeyes well below their season average of 28.5 ppg, forcing two turnovers and recording five sacks. Ohio State took a 3-0 lead, but Penn State took the lead for good on a 13-yard touchdown run by freshman Derrick Williams. On OSU’s next possession, safety Calvin Lowry grabbed an interception, returning it 36 yards to the OSU 2 to set-up a one-yard touchdown run by quarterback Michael Robinson. Ohio State closed to within 14-10 at halftime, but Kevin Kelly hit a 41-yard field goal early in the third period for a 17-10 lead. From there, the PSU defense was relentless, not allowing OSU to advance past the PSU 33. With 1:21 to play, All-America DE Tamba Hali forced a fumble that DT Scott Paxson pounced on at the OSU 48. All-America linebacker Paul Posluszny led the defense with 14 tackles, including a 10-yard sack on OSU’s next to last possession to become the first player to earn Big Ten Player of the Week three consecutive weeks since the selections began in 1987.

Coach Jim Tressel

Tressel is 5-3 against Penn State and 2-2 at Beaver Stadium

Next Meeting

The two teams meet again next season at Ohio State on November 13, 2010.

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