At PENN STATE (1-0) Attendance: 108,000+ (Sold Out) Series Record: Penn State Leads, 6-5 Game No
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Football Release: Sept. 8, 2002 N I T T A N Y L I O N F O O T B A L L 2 0 0 2 P E N N S T A T E Penn State Media Relations Assistant Athletic Director for Communications: Jeff Nelson Ph: 814-865-1757 FAX: 814-863-3165 E-Mail: [email protected] w w w . G o P S U s p o r t s . c o m Address: 101 D Bryce Jordan Center, University Park, Pa. 16802-7101 When: Saturday, September 14, 2002 NEBRASKA (3-0) Where: Beaver Stadium (107,282) Kickoff: 8:07 p.m. EDT at PENN STATE (1-0) Attendance: 108,000+ (sold out) Series Record: Penn State leads, 6-5 Game No. 2 Coaches: Penn State returns to action following its only open date of the season, hosting Nebraska for a prime- Joe Paterno (PSU), 328-96-3 (77.1) in his 37th season. time showdown in the first meeting between the national powers since 1983. In 53rd year on Penn State staff. Owns the all-time record for The No. 25 Nittany Lions have not played since a 27-24 season-opening win over the University of wins among I-A coaches. Among nine coaches in NCAA histo- Central Florida on Aug. 31. The No. 8/7 Cornhuskers are 3-0 and coming off a 44-13 win over Utah State ry with 300 wins (five in I-A). Reached 300 wins faster than any last Saturday. coach. Is 2-3 vs. Nebraska. Has been on the PSU coaching staff Close to 50 members of Penn State’s 1982 National Championship team are expected to attend the for nine of the 11 games against Nebraska all-time. game and will be introduced at halftime. Frank Solich (N), 45-9 in his fifth year overall. Is 0-0 vs. Ten members of FDNY rescue units will be honored prior to the game. Penn State. The Beaver Stadium attendance record of 109,313, set vs. Miami last year, could fall on Saturday. T H E S E R I E S : Lions Seek 199th Beaver Stadium Win The Nittany Lions and Cornhuskers are meeting for the 12th time, with Penn State holding a 6-5 series advantage. In Just Seventh Night Game in Facility The teams are meeting for the first time since Nebraska’s The clash with Nebraska will be just the seventh night game in the 245-game his- 44-6 win in 1983 in the inaugural Kickoff Classic. The squads tory of Beaver Stadium. The Nittany Lions own a 198-47 (80.8) record in the facility last met in Beaver Stadium in 1982, with the Lions capturing a since it was moved to its present location in 1960. scintillating, last second 27-24 win. Penn State is 3-3 in night games in Beaver Stadium, with the last such game The teams will next meet Sept. 13, 2003 in Lincoln. against No. 2 Miami in the 2001 season opener. (See page 3 for series scores). T E L E V I S O N : The contest will be televised by ABC to 76 percent of the 2002 SCHEDULE & RESULT S nation with Brad Nessler, Bob Griese and Lynn Swann calling Overall: 1-0; Big Ten: 0-0; Home: 1-0; Away: 0-0; Neutral: 0-0 the action. The Lions are appearing on television for the 93rd Date Opponent W/L Score TV Attend. time in their last 94 games, including the last 59 contests. 8/31 UCF W 27-24 ESPN 103,029 R A D I O : 9/14 Nebraska 8:07 p.m. ABC The 60-station Penn State Sports Network has Steve Jones 9/21 Louisiana Tech 12:05 p.m. ESPN + on play-by-play and Jack Ham on analysis. The Pinnacle 9/28 Iowa (All-Uniersity Day) TBA Sports Radio Network and Sports USA Radio Network also will 10/5 at Wisconsin TBA broadcast. 10/12 at Michigan TBA 10/19 Northwestern (Homecoming) 12:05 p.m. 10/26 at Ohio State TBA 11/2 Illinois TBA 11/9 Virginia TBA 11/16 at Indiana TBA 11/23 Michigan State TBA w w w. G o P S U s p o r t s . c o m PENN STATE VS NEBRASKA, 9/14/02 QU I CK I N F O Lions vs. Huskers Radio: Penn State Sports Network -- 60 affiliates (Steve Jones, play-by-play; Jack Ham, analysis); Pinnacle Sports Radio AT A GLANCE Network (Jim Rose, play-by-play; Adrian Fiala, analysis; Gary Sharp, sideline); Sports USA Radio Network (Larry Kahn, play- by-play; Gino Toretta, analyst; Troy West, sideline). Television: ABC split national telecast (Brad Nessler, play- Penn State Coach Joe Paterno by-play; Bob Griese, analysis; Lynn Swann, sideline) In his 37th season as head coach and 53rd year as a member of the coaching staff, Joe Paterno is the leader in career victories among major college coaches. Paterno owns a 328-96-3 record, a winning per- Series History: 12th meeting. Penn State leads, 6-5. centage of 77.2, which is fourth-best among active Division I-Acoaches. He broke the record for career wins Last Game: Aug. 29, 1983; NU 44, PSU 6; Kickoff Classic by a major college coach, passing Paul “Bear” Bryant, with his 324th victory in Penn State’s thrilling 29-27 Last PSU win: Sept. 25, 1982; PSU 27, NU 24 win over Ohio State on Oct. 27, 2001. Next Game: Sept. 13, 2003 in Lincoln A 1950 graduate of Brown University, Paterno has directed Penn State to five unbeaten seasons (1968, ‘69, ‘73, ‘86, ‘94), two national championships (1982, ‘86) and is the bowl wins leader with a 20-9-1 post- Best Rushing Performance In The Series: season record. He is second only to Chicago’s Amos Alonzo Stagg (41) in years coached at one school. Curt Warner, PSU, 28 for 238, 1981 Paterno is one of just nine coaches in NCAA history to record 300 wins (five in I-A), reaching the mile- Jarvis Redwine, NU, 34 for 189, 2 TD, 1980 stone faster than anyone (380 games). He is the only Div. I-A coach with 300 wins at one school. Paterno has been instrumental in PSU’s 432-144-7 record since 1950, with its 74.7 winning percent- Best Passing Performances In The Series: age the nation’s second-best over the past 52 seasons. Since Paterno became head coach in 1966, there have been 709 head coaching changes in Division Todd Blackledge, PSU, 23 for 39, 295 yds, 3 TD, 1982 I-A, an average of six changes per school. Turner Gill, NU, 16 for 34, 239 yds, 2TD, 1982 Nebraska Coach Frank Solich Best Receiving Performances In The Series: Frank Solich is 45-9 in his fifth year as coach of the Cornhukers. He has led Nebraska to two Big 12 Gregg Garrity, PSU, 5 for 75, 1982 North Division titles and one Big 12 Championship. Solich was an assistant coach with the Cornhuskers from Kenny Jackson, PSU, 4 for 93, 1980 1979-97 and was a three-year letterman at Nebraska, graduating in 1966. He was born in Johnstown, Pa. Irving Fryar, NU, 7 for 112, 1 TD, 1982 Penn State-Nebraska Ties Penn State vs. Big 12: The Lions are 20-12 (62.5) vs. cur- rent Big 12 Conference members. Dr. Graham Spanier was appointed Penn State’s 16th president in September, 1995. Spanier returned to Paterno Teams vs. Big 12: The Lions are 15-9 (62.5) vs. State College after serving as chancellor at Nebraska since 1991. He was a member of the Penn State fac- current Big 12 members under Joe Paterno. ulty from 1973-82, then served at SUNY-Stony Brook, Oregon State and Nebraska. Penn State vs. Non-Conference Teams (since 1993): Bill Kenney, the Nittany Lions’ tackles and tight ends coach, was a graduate assistant coach at Nebraska 32-6 in 1986 and ‘87 under Tom Osborne. Kenney left the Cornhuskers to become a graduate assistant at Penn Paterno Teams In September: 91-26, a winning percent- State in 1988 and from 1989-91 was the assistant offensive line coach. He served as recruiting coordina- age of 77.8 tor in 1992 and was offensive line coach from 1993-99 before moving into his current duties in 2000. Paterno Teams on National Network Telecasts: 136-69-1 mark since 1966. Rankings: Penn State was No. 25 in the Sept. 8 USA Today/ESPNCoaches’ poll. Nebraska was No. 7 in the Sept. 8 MEDIA SERVICES FOR NEBRASKA GAME Coaches poll and No. 8 in the Associated Press survey. Penn State players and Coach Joe Paterno will be available at a press conference on Tuesday, Sept. 10 at 12:00 p.m. ET to preview the Nittany Lions’ game with Nebraska. To participate either in person or NEBRASKA SCHEDULE via telephone, please contact the Penn State Sports Information office (814-865-1757). The press confer- ence also will be available live via satellite. Date Opponent W/L Score Satellite coordinates are: AMC 2, Transponder K9 (Ku), Downlink 11880 V. Three Penn State players will be available at 12:00 p.m., followed by Paterno at 12:30. The trans- Aug. 24 Arizona State W 48-10 mission concludes at 1:00. Aug. 31 Troy State W 31-16 Sept. 7 Utah State W 44-13 The “Nittany Lion Hotline" radio call-in show, featuring Joe Paterno, will be aired on the Penn Sept.