THE PERFECT SEASON
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THE PERFECT SEASON
How Penn State Came to Stop a Hurricane and
Win a National Football Championship
M. G. MISSANELLI
The Pennsylvania State University Press
University Park, Pennsylvania
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Missanelli, M. G., 1955-
The perfect season : how Penn State came to stop a
hurricane and win a National Championship /
M
.G. Missanelli.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN-13: 978-0-271-03282-5 (cloth : alk. paper)
1. Pennsylvania State University-Football-History.
2. Penn State Nittany Lions (Football team)-History.
3. Fiesta Bowl (Football game) (1987 : Tempe, Ariz.)
I. Title.
GV958.P46M57 2007
796.332’630974853-dc22
2007010235
Copyright © 2007 The Pennsylvania State University
All rights reserved
Printed in the United States of America by Thomson-Shore
Published by The Pennsylvania State University Press,
University Park, PA 16802-1003
It is the policy of The Pennsylvania State University Press to
use acid-free paper. This book is printed on Natures natural,
containing 50% post-consumer waste, and meets the minimum
requirements of American National Standard for Information
Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Material,
ANSI Z39.48–1992.
Book design/typesetting by Garet Markvoort/zijn digital
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CONTENTS
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I REMEMBER FEELING LIKE SOMEBODY HAD HIT ME
FOREWORD
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viii FOREWORD
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I WAS IN THE STADIUM THE NIGHT PENN STATE
PREFACE AND ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
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x PREFACE AND ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
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I MUST FIRST THANK
PREFACE AND ACKNOWLEDGMENTS xi
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xii PREFACE AND ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
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1. September 6 (Beaver Stadium): Penn State 45, Temple 15
2. September 20 (at Foxboro, Mass.): Penn State 26, Boston College 14
3. September 27 (Beaver Stadium): Penn State 42, East Carolina 17
HOW THEY FINISHED 12–0: THE SEASON IN REVIEW
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4. October 4 (Beaver Stadium): Penn State 31, Rutgers 6
5. October 11 (Beaver Stadium): Penn State 23, Cincinnati 17
6. October 18 (Beaver Stadium): Penn State 42, Syracuse 3
xiv HOW THEY FINISHED 12–0
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7. October 25 (at Tuscaloosa, Ala.): Penn State 23, Alabama 3
8. November 1 (at Morgantown, W.V.): Penn State 19, West Virginia 0
9. November 8 (Beaver Stadium): Penn State 17, Maryland 15
10. November 15 (at South Bend, Ind.): Penn State 24, Notre Dame 19
HOW THEY FINISHED 12–0 xv
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11. November 22 (Beaver Stadium): Penn State 34, Pittsburgh 14
12. January 2, 1987 (at Tempe, Ariz.): Penn State 14, Miami 10
xvi HOW THEY FINISHED 12–0
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THE PERFECT SEASON
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“EVERY TIME WE CALLED
1
DEKE
157 Power.
That play had been Penn State’s
bread and butter all season long with
field position near the five-yard line.
The Nittany Lions were at the Miami
five with less than nine minutes to go in
the game.
Shane Conlan had put them there
when he picked off Vinny Testaverde
with an over-the-shoulder grab at the
Miami 43 for his second interception of
the game and then rumbled 38 yards
down the right sideline.
In the huddle, quarterback John
Shaffer called 157 Power, a formation
where the Nittany Lions spread the
field with three wideouts and then
power it inside with D.J. Dozier fol-
lowing the fullback off tackle. On first
down in that formation, the quarter-
back fumbled the snap! But the Lions
retained possession.
On second down, Shaffer called
the same play. This time, the transfer
went perfectly and Dozier rumbled
untouched into the end zone to give
Penn State a 14–10 lead with 8:13 left in
the fourth quarter.
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4 THE PERFECT SEASON
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DEKE 5
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6 THE PERFECT SEASON
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DEKE 7
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8 THE PERFECT SEASON
ELEVEN PENN STATE STARTERS
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