Well, would you believe the top 50? Nittany Lions Kentucky fried By BARB PARMER . Assistant Sports Editor LEXINGTON, Ky. Ohio State forgivable, even half-expected. y lowa “Hell, we never should have lost that one, ’ ’ but explainable. Kentucky Well, y’all just plain frustra tin’. Penn ' State football players, the most cheered, most cursed collection of bodies on campus, are presently being lauded with the choicest of phrases thanks to a few fired up Wildcats in bluegrass country. “Yeah, the fans are spoiled, they’ve been spoiled for so many yearsV’ 'said Scott Fitz kee, who had the best punting day of his career in Saturday’s 22-6 loss to Kentucky. “I know I’m not going to give up. We’re going to all over, just start tne season over The place they’d like to begin the forgetting process has to be the four quarters of com plete frustration in sun-bathed Com monwealth Stadium. At the risk of conjuring up a few more lingering ghosts, here’s what happened for tf you armchair QB’s, fans and ex-fans who “spent the weekend enjoying the rootbeer parties in State College. The frustration began before Neil Hutton ever carried the opening kickoff out of the endzone to the 25-yard line. The Lions’ top ground gainer, freshman Matt Suhey would sit out the entire contest, victim of a leg in jury in last weekend’s fray. Two plays into the game, quarterback John Andress let the ball sail right into the hands of flanker Jimmy Cefalo. Cefalo made the catch out of bounds, and Andress was down on the field. No gain and the starting quar terback out for at least six weeks with a broken collarbone. Another play, and Fitzkee kicked his shortest punt of the afternoon, a 35 yarder to, the Wildcat 30. “We were up for this game. We went out there and we played the best we could,” defensive end Bill Banks said. “I thought we were ready to go in and do it find win,’’Fitzkee explained. , But, Penn State’s pre-game enthusiasm never solidified on the field. .Instead, the Wildcats took control, via the ground game and put together a 59-yard drive dn 13 plays for the first score of the ball game. Kentucky 7, Pehn State 0 familiar? #Even the famed Nittany Lion, going stale due to lack of pushups, sparred with the Wildcat mascot on the sidelines in an effort to keep in shape The score held up until halftime, as two interceptions thrown by backup quarterback Chuck Fusina and lack of a Lion running game stalled any offensive threat by the it struggling visitors. Penn State had the edge in total yards gained at the half, mostly on aerials, but Kentucky held the upper hand on the scoreboard. ' Finally, in the opening moments of the second half, Penn State got a much-needed freak. Kentucky fullback Rod Stewart lost me ball at the Kentucky 21 after a 12-yard romp. Banks pounced on the loose football, Lams stay perfect in /M's Led by Steve (Skito) Swanson’s three in ■ terceptions, Sam’s Lams kept I their record perfect at 3-0 last | night by shutting out the • Green Panthers, 14-0, in an , independent I.M. football i’ame. Last year’s defending ! champions have now gone 14 | straight games over a two i year, span without their defense giving up a touch , down. All together, the team ; had five ‘♦■night to stop the Panthers’ every time they had a drive going. Greg Mason, QB for Sam’s Lams, played an excellent game and showed why his team is the defending Kentucky “thumped’’ out the yards against the Penn State defense, running off the Wishbone. Here, soph tailback Chris Hill rams the line for the Wildcats’ first score. . —-W. ---W r' |CGte| giving the Lions its best field position of the day. But, even two complete passes could not make up the yardage for an offensive holding call, and coach Joe Patemo sent in Tony Capozzoli to attempt a 40-yard three-point play. His effort fell short, setting the stage for even more frustration in the closing two quarters. “We just weren’t consistent enough. We were driving for a while,” Fusina said. “We’ve had spurts of offense and we’d make a mistake and lose it,” Fitzkee added. “We’re not doing the little things (right) that make a team go.” Back-to-back fumbles by Penn State.inside the Lion 25-yard line set up a Wildcat touch down and field goal that proved to be fatal blows. Kentucky 16, Penn State 0 things went from bad to worse. In the meantime, Kentucky was busy racking up the yards, even connecting through the air on crucial plays. And, Penn State found itself taking severe physical abuse from its hosts. Adding injury to insult, several Lions were shaken up on the field, including Hutton, Banks and Randy Sidler. . The Wildcats put together their longest scoring drive of the day at the close of the third quarter, covering 92-yards in seven plays for a 22-0 lead. Quarterback Derrick Ramsey netted most of his 95-total yards on a 61-yard sprint off the option play for the score. The Lions ruined Kentucky’s bid for a shut out (something unheard of since Fran Curci took over the coaching duties in ’72) as the result of a 36-yard interference penalty on an endzone pass attempt from Fusina to Fitzkee for the Lions’ biggest play of the day. Two running plays from the one -yard line (where the ball was placed as a result of the ref’s call) netted minus-one yard, and Fusina finally cashed in on a two-yard pass play to tight end Micky Schuler. Although Kentucky sacrificed the shutout, it didn’t give up any momentum, making the winningest active coach in the nation and his charges one of the biggest disappointments of 1976,-at least according to more than one commentator. “I’m going to take a long, hard look at everything and see where we are,” Paterno said after dropping to 1-3. “I’ve been here before. I’m not going to panic.” First downs Rushes-yards Passing yards passes 1 Punts-yardsave. Fumbles-lost Penalties-yards Penn State Kentucky champs. His 41-yard TD pass to Jim Quay with 0:20 left in the first half crushed any thoughts of an'upset by the Panthers. Vic Sellers IM scores TOUCII FOOTBALL FIIATE UNITY —Phi Delta Theta def. Pi Lambda Phi, 19-0; Alpha Zeta def. Delta Theta Sigma, 6-0; Phi Kappa Tau def. Sigma Tau Gamma; ovt.; Beta Theta Pi def. Phi Kappa Theta, 10-0. INDEPENDENTS—Sam's Lams def. Green Panthers, 14-0; Bongo Fury def. Altemouse, forfeit; Mong Kickers def. Mixed Nuts, forfeit; ”ers def. Dixie Chiicken, 20-0; Barn Stormers def. Fat- Penn Stale 29-61 151 29-15-2 6-44.5 2-2 6-74 0 0 0 6 6 7 0 15 0— 22 ty Acids, 6-2; Park Forest def. Red Machine, 14-0; Park and Briar def. Army, forfeit. GRADUATES-SPA def. NUCE, for feit; Davey AC def. FFITW, 2-0; Soft Touch def. Statics, ovt.; Whisler's Mo thers def. MBAB, 26-0; Holding Co. def. Bodies, 3-0; El Cid def. Wizards, 3-0; Fuz. Follies def. Turtles 7-0; Thunder claps def. Red Tide. 12-0. DORMITORY—Hickory def. Maple, 13-0; Larch def. Jordan, 5-1, Ist downs; Lycoming def. Chester, 12-0; Lebanon def. York, 7-0; Northampton def. Fleet wood, 41-0; Ogontz def. Mercer, 14-0; Lancaster def. Mifflin, 12-7; Cumber- I I ■ land def. Nitt 22-3-4-5, forfeit; Clear- f f\ I I I I I Il^ field def. Bedford, 15-0; Northumberland & 111 I I I I I I II II I I I def. Nitt. 32-3-4-5, 64); Nitt. 26-7-8-9 def. ■ I VJr V* ■ I Fayette, 12-0; Leete 3-4 def. Warren, ovt. ■ COED FLAG FOOTBALL Hot Shots II def. Fanny Flags, 25-6; S&H Ballhandlers def. Pollack Passers, forfeit;- Chelsea House def. S and H. 7-0; Mad Dogs def. Inter. Culture, 12-7; No Names def. Pollock 1245'5, 7-6; Old Timers def. Leete 11, 26-0; Superstars def. Porter-Shuitz, 12-12, 2-1 Ist downs; Leftovers M and M's, dbl. ft.; Fear less Falcons def. WDFA, forfeit Wishbone LEXINGTON, KY. This is a very special time of year in the land of blue-grass, race horses, and bourbon. It’s Christmas. And because the University of Kentucky football players were good ole boys and .did exactly what they were told, the Wildcats got just what they had asked Santa for a win against Penn State. Kentucky After playing Santa and giving the game ball to his offensive backfield, Kentucky head coach Fran Curci explained the triumph at a post-game press conference. “I told our boys we could run on Penn State, and we did! 8-2-1 5-33.8 5-3 7-64 “When you have to stop four backs, three of which are gonna get 100 yards on the day, it’s gonna be tough for the defense.” And it was extremely tough for the Lion defense to even so much as slow down the Kentucky wishbone attack, let alone stop it. The Lion defenders spent most of Saturday afternoon being trampled on and over by what Curci calls “thumpers.” There can be no more accurate description than “thumpers” for the quick, big, and bruising Kentucky backfield. Curci’s eyes sparkle when he is asked about Derrick Ramsey. “Ram is the best quarterback m the country for what he does.” And what Ramsey does is operate the wishbone offense just as it was designed to operate. By the AP Ten years later and the same infamous 10-10 score. Only this time the teams were different. In 1966, Notre Dame refused to gamble in the final Photo by Andy Qumborg Lion sub defensive end Bruce Austin ‘(56, white) throws an arm at Wildcat right guard Tom Dornbrook as he pursues running back Greg Woods. Austin failed to make the stop. By CHUCK BUCHANAN Collegian Sports Writer minutes and settled for a 10-10 standoff with Michigan State in a late-season battle for college football’s national championship. Notre Dame won the title anyway. Saturday, two other teams with designs on the throne, fourth-ranked UCLA and No. 8 Ohio State, went at it eyeball-to-eyeball and settled absolutely nothing in another 10-10 cruncher as 87,969 hometown Columbus, Ohio, fanatics booed arch conservative Coach' Woody Hayes, who 1 ordered seven straight running plays in the late going and then punted from the UCL4 47 with 35 seconds The Bruins promptly ate up the remaining time with three rushing plays of their own. It was a stiff weekend for most of the nation’s top teams. Only two members of The Associated Press’ Top Twenty suffered what could be termed real upsets altogether, five ranked teams lost-but only top-rated Michigan, sixth-ranked Georgia, No. 12 Missouri, No. 13 Southern California and No. 18 Notre Dame had things Archer holds on to LAS VEGAS (AP) Gangling George Archer birdied his final hole for a two under-par 69 and snapped a dismal, three year slump yesterday with a come from-behind victory in the Sahara Invitational Golf Tournament. The 6-foot-5 Archer, plagued with a back ailment and wrist problems that required surgery, swept past third round leader Don January and held off a gallant bid by defending champion Dave Hill in acquiring his first title in four years with a 271 total, 13-under-par on the 6,800-yard Sahara Invitational Golf backs 'thump' away “It may not have been my best game,” Ramsey told a flock of reporters gathered around his locker after the game, “but it certainly was a good one.” Ramsey thumped his way over and through the Penn State defense for 95 yards on Saturday. Most came via the keeper off the option to the wide side of the field, a play used sparingly but most effectively by the Wildcats “We had a lot of confidence in that call and we used it to get the big yards,” Ramsey said. The option-keeper was most instrumental in the first and last Kentucky touchdown drives. On the Wildcats’ second possession of the game, their time-consuming march downfield had ap parently stalled on the Penn State 26 yard line. With fourth and one, Curci opted not for the field goal. The Kentucky offensive front had already established what would later be total dominence of the line-play, so Curci elected to go for the first down. In a similar situation, the Nittany Lions would send the fullback up the middle, but the Wildcats, with the option in their repertoire, knew better. They also knew that both Ohio State and lowa had effectively used the option against Penn State to get crucial yardage. Ramsey took the snap, sprinted along the line of scrimmage to the wide side of the field, faked a pitch to his tailback, tucked the ball under his shoulder, and fell to the turf eight-yards and a first down later. Woody settles for tie pretty much their own way. Michigan, a lopsided favorite, wore down stubborn Wake Forest 31-0 as Rob Lytle rushed for 110 yards on 14 carries, scored twice and passed the legendary Tom Harmon for fifth place on the Wolverines’ all-time ground gaining charts. Georgia dampened 10th ranked Alabama’s hopes of a sixth consecutive Southeastern Conference championship by handing the Crimson Tide its first shutout in 70 games, 21-0. Alabama has dropped two of its three league games and there has never been an SEC champ with two setbacks. Georgia’s Matt Robinson scored on a three-yard run and passed six yards to Ulysses Norris for another tally while the Bulldogs’ defdnse-the aptly named “Junkyard Dogs”-held Alabama to 49 yards on 45 rushing plays and never let the Tide inside the 19-yard line. Curtis Brown gained 161 yards, including a game breaking 52-yard run, as Missouri handed No. 14 North Carolina its first defeat 24-3. Tournament. Archer, who had won only $36,633 less than expanses—in the last three sea sons, collected $27,000 from the total purse of $135,000 for the most welcome victory of his career with a deft little pitch to within less than a foot, setting up the birdie four on the 72nd hole. January, who blew the lead with three bogeys in a row starting on the seventh hole, and Hill finished in a tie for second, at 273. The 46-year-old January, who led Archer by one stroke starting the mild, The Daily Collegian Monday, October 4,1976 For all purposes, that play meant the game. With momentum secured, Kentucky marched the remaining distance for the touchdown. They were never headed. Then, with a 16-0 lead in the third period, Ramsey called for the wide-side option again. “When I saw the daylight and heard the crowd roar” Ramsey said about his 61-yard touchdown sprint, “I knew I was gone.” Ramsey, in four games, has eight of the ten rushing touchdowns scored by Kentucky this season and he averages 80- yards per game on the ground. The trio of “thumpers” in the Wildcat backfield with Ramsey may not be as big as the quarterback (6’4” 222 lbs.) but they pack a tremendous wallop just the same. The black and blue Penn State defensive platoon can attest to that. Fullback Rod Stewart averages 72 yards a game, tailback Chris Hill is good for 62 each Saturday, and wingback Greg Woods chips in his 60 every game. Curci’s eyes sparkle once more as he is asked about Kentucky’s rushing attack. Reflecting on the 399 yards on the ground against Penn State, he cannot be blamed for pretending to be Santa Claus and making a present of the game ball to his of fensive backfield. One can almost hear Curd: “On Ramsey, on Stewart, on Hill and Woods. Thump away, thump away, thump away all!” Backup quarterback Rob Hertel threw four touchdown passes and reserve tailback Charles White rushed for 120 yards, leading No. 13 Southern California to a 55-0 rout of lowa, which was held to two yards total offense in the first half. Rick Slager threw two touchdown passes and Notre Dame’s defense played its third straight game without allowing a TD as the Irish stomped Michigan State 24-6. Elsewhere, runner-up Pitt stormed to a 37-7 lead over Duke as Matt Cavanaugh threw five touchdown passes, then stymied a late rally by the Blue Devils to win 44-31. Cavanaugh’s scoring pitches covered 66 and 10 yards to Willie Taylor, 27 to Jim Corbett and 37 and 24 to Gordon Jones. Third-ranked Oklahoma needed Horace Ivory’s 62- yard dash with 4:08 left and Jerry Anderson’s 58-yard interception return minutes later to turn back lowa State 24-10. Fifth-ranked Nebraska spotted Miami, Fla. a 64) half time lead and then rallied for win Sahara Open a 17-9 triumph as Vince Ferragamo fired scoring passes of 32 yards to Chuck Malito and 23 to Dave Shamblin. Seventh-ranked Maryland needed a 48 yard third quarter pass from Mark Manges to. Chuck White to nail down a 20-9 decision over unheralded Villanova, while ninth-ranked Kansas came away with a wild 34-24 victory over Wisconsin despite a whopping yield of 477 yards. Second string quarterback' Bill Kynes scored one touch down and passed for another but I9th-ranked Florida needed a late goal-line stand to hold off No. 11 Louisiana State 28-23. Oft-injured Dave Zumbach, who hadn’t caught a pass in 364 days, latched onto scoring, tosses of 35 and 23 yards from Ken Smith to lead No. 15 Boston College past Navy 17-. 13. Ireland’s Neil O’Donoghue kicked a 44 yard field goal in the first period and Phil Gargis sprinted five yards for a last minute touchdown as Auburn upset No. 16 Mississippi sunny, breezy day, could do no better than a 73. Hill once closed within one shot of the lead but couldn’t match Archer’s birdie on the last hole. He had a 67. “I’m tickled to death for George,” said Hill, “but I wasn’t going to lay down for him. He had to win it. And he did.” Dr. Gil Morgan and Mike McCullough were next at 274. Morgan had a 67 and McCullough a 68. Gene Littler, George Burns, Rik Massengale, Wally Armstrong and Bruce Lietzke were next at 275.
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers