Penn State-Pitt: A History
Facts and Figures The teams played every year from 1900 through 1931, then from 1935 through 1992. From 1903 through 1970, all but six games were played in Pittsburgh, counting Pitt Stadium and Forbes Field. The teams also met for three straight years at Three Rivers Stadium from 1974 through 1976.
Facts and Figures
The teams played every year from 1900 through 1931, then from 1935 through 1992.
From 1903 through 1970, all but six games were played in Pittsburgh, counting Pitt Stadium and Forbes Field. The teams also met for three straight years at Three Rivers Stadium from 1974 through 1976.
Pitt won 14 straight games from 1922 through 1938. Starting that run in 1913, the Panthers held a 20-1-2 record in that period over Penn State.
Penn State's longest winning streak in the series is 10, 1966 through 1975. The Nittany Lions also won seven straight from 1989 through 1999.
Joe Paterno coached the most games (31) in the series, compiling a 23-7-1 record.
Jock Sutherland coached the most games for Pitt against Penn State and won them all, going 12-0 from 1924 through 1938.
A total of 46 players and coaches who took part in the Penn State-Pitt game - 23 for each team - are members of the College Football Hall of Fame.
In five games in the rivalry between the two teams, both were ranked in the top 11 on the day of the game four times, and one team was ranked No. 1 in the other two. Pitt won the national championship in 1976, and Penn State fell short against Alabama in the Sugar Bowl with the 1978 title at stake.
When the series started in 1893, it matched the Pennsylvania State College against Western University of Pennsylvania. Western changed its name to the University of Pittsburgh in 1908, and PSC became the Pennsylvania State University in 1953.
Notable games
1893: With Gen. James Beaver present, Penn State dedicates Beaver Field and defeats the then-Western University of Pennsylvania, 32-0, in the first game of the series.
1925: In the first game between the two teams at the "new" Pitt Stadium, the Panthers win, 23-7.
1931: The teams meet in State College for the first time since 1902, and Pitt wins, 41-6.
1947: Penn State closes out its first undefeated regular season in school history with a 29-0 win at Pittsburgh.
1950: A snowstorm in Pittsburgh delays the game one week. The Nittany Lions return and defeat the Panthers, 21-20, in the "Snow Bowl" at Forbes Field.
1976: Tony Dorsett has a big second half on his way to 224 rushing yards and the Panthers finish up an undefeated regular season with a 24-7 win at Three Rivers Stadium, and go on to win the national championship.
1978: Ranked No. 1, Penn State trails late in the fourth quarter at home before Mike Guman scores on fourth down, and the Nittany Lions go on to a 17-10 win.
1981: Quarterbacked by Dan Marino, No. 1 Pittsburgh scores the game's first two touchdowns at Pitt Stadium before Todd Blackledge leads an incredible rally that gives the Nittany Lions a 48-14 victory.
1982: Second-ranked Penn State defeats No. 5 Pitt, 19-10, at Beaver Stadium, setting up a battle in the Sugar Bowl that results in a 27-23 win over Georgia and the Lions' first national championship.
1983: The game ends with host Pitt gaining an apparent 24-21 victory, but officials rule that time still remains and clear the field of fans, allowing Penn State's Nick Gancitano to kick a 32-yard field goal for the tie.
1992: The Nittany Lions, who will start Big Ten play the next season, roll to a 57-13 win at Beaver Stadium and end a run of 58 consecutive games against the Panthers.
1997: The series resumes and Penn State, ranked No. 1 in the preseason, gains a season-opening 34-17 win over the Panthers at home.
2000: The matchup is played for the 96th - and perhaps, final - time at Three Rivers Stadium, where Pitt shuts down the Penn State offense in a 12-0 victory.