With Penn State set to take the trip to Columbus, Ohio this weekend to face the No. 1 Buckeyes here are a few interesting notes heading into the primetime matchup.
SUCCESS ON THE GRIDIRON
• Penn State and Ohio State both rank among the top-eight programs in winning percentage and total victories in NCAA history.
• Penn State is tied for third nationally with its 28 bowl victories, while Ohio State has 21 bowl wins. The teams are tied for ninth nationally with 45 bowl appearances.
• Four of the top-12 winningest programs in NCAA history are from the Big Ten.
• Penn State sits No. 10 in winning percentage (.688) and tied for No. 7 in all-time victories (854).
• Ohio State sits at No. 5 with 869 victories and No. 4 with an all-time winning percentage of .722.
• The Nittany Lions and Buckeyes are also among the most ranked teams in NCAA history, according to the AP poll (since 1936).
• Ohio State has spent 102 weeks ranked No. 1 in the AP Poll (1st all-time) and Penn State has earned the No. 1 ranking by the AP on 21 occasions (T-15th all-time). (Not including preseason rankings)
• Penn State’s 591 weeks ranked among the AP Top-25 rank ninth all-time, while Ohio State’s 844 weeks are the most in NCAA history.
SCOUTING THE BUCKEYES
• The top-ranked team all season, Ohio State is undefeated through six games, including Big Ten contests at Indiana (34-27) and vs. Maryland (49-28).
• The Buckeyes lead the Big Ten averaging 36.8 points per game and 460.0 yards of total offense. Their 300.2 yards of total defense per game ranks fifth.
• Ezekiel Elliot leads the conference and ranks 11th nationally with 159.7 rushing yards per game.
• Michael Thomas is among the Big Ten’s top WR with four TDs and 4.5 catches for 66.5 yards per game.
• Ohio State is also a scoring threat on defense as one of 11 teams tops nationally with three defensive scores.
LIONS GET CRACK AT NO. 1
• Penn State will be facing the nation’s top-ranked team for the first time since a 2010 meeting at Alabama.
• Penn State has faced a top-ranked Ohio State team three times (1998, 2006, 2007), with the Buckeyes prevailing in all three.
• The Nittany Lions are 4-11 against the nation’s No. 1 team all-time.
• Two of the Lions’ wins over No. 1 came in National Championship bowl games, with the Nittany Lions winning both — the 1983 Sugar Bowl over Georgia and the 1987 Fiesta Bowl over Miami (Fla.).
• The Nittany Lions’ other two wins over No. 1 came in regular season games at Pitt (1981) and Notre Dame (1990).
PENN STATE VS. THE DEFENDING CHAMPS
• The 2015 season slate marks the 24th in Penn State’s history to feature the previous season’s National Champion (PSU faced both split champions in 1897.) The Ohio State game will be the 25th against a defending National Champion.
• Penn State is 5-16-3 all-time against defending National Champions, and 3-6 since 1971.
• 17 of those games have been on the road and two at neutral sites.
• Penn State last faced a defending champ in 2010 when it visited Alabama, falling 24-3.
• Penn State hosted Ohio State following its 2002 national title, and the Buckeyes rallied from behind to steal a 21-20 victory in Beaver Stadium.
• The Nittany Lions enjoyed their greatest success against defending champs from 1971-91, defeating three of four.
• The Lions’ last win over a defending champion was in the 1991 season opener against Georgia Tech, a 34-22 victory in Giants Stadium.
PENN STATE VS. BIG TEN
• Penn State owns a 190-94-3 mark against Big Ten Conference teams since the Nittany Lions first opposed Ohio State in 1912.
• The Nittany Lions began play as a member of the Big Ten Conference in 1993 and have a 111-67 mark.
• Prior to joining the conference, Penn State played 107 games vs. the current Big Ten alignment and was 79-25-3 in those games.
• Maryland and Rutgers joined the Big Ten on July 1, 2014.
LIONS UNDER THE LIGHTS
• After playing three Big Ten games at night in 2014, Penn State is slated to play at least two this season.
• For the second year in a row, Penn State opened its Big Ten slate with a nighttime victory over Rutgers.
• Penn State and Ohio State played their sixth primetime clash since 2005 last season and were in primetime for the third consecutive year. The streak will be extended at Ohio State at 8 p.m. on ABC.
• On Oct. 12, 2012, the Nittany Lions claimed the longest game in Big Ten history when they edged Michigan under the lights, 43-40, in front of a sellout Beaver Stadium crowd of 107,844 on Homecoming.
• This year marks the eighth time since 2000 that Penn State will play multiple night games in the same season (Rutgers, at Ohio State).
• Penn State has played at least one regular season night game in 15 consecutive seasons.
• Penn State has a 42-28 record in night games, going 10-10 at home, 20-11 on the road, 1-1 at regular season neutral sites and 11-6 in bowl games, including last season’s Pinstripe Bowl.
• The Lions’ night games over the past 15 seasons include: Rutgers (2015), Boston College (Pinstripe Bowl), Ohio State, Michigan and Rutgers (2014); Ohio State, Michigan and UCF (2013); Iowa and Ohio State (2012); Northwestern (2011); Alabama, Iowa and Michigan (2010); Iowa (2009); Illinois, Wisconsin and Ohio State (2008); Notre Dame, Ohio State and Texas A&M (2007), Michigan (2006), Illinois, Ohio State and Florida State (2005), Minnesota and Boston College (2004), Nebraska (2002 and `03), Miami (Fla.) (2001) and Indiana (2000).
INJURY BUG
• The Nittany Lions have been hit with the injury bug this season with more than 38 games lost to injury.
Among the notable games lost are:
• Nyeem Wartman-White — 5.5 games
• Adam Breneman — 5 games
• Ben Kline — 4 games
• Andrew Nelson — 3.5 games
• Saquon Barkley — 2.5 games
• Akeel Lynch — 2.5 games
• Marcus Allen — 2 games (played only two snaps vs. SDSU)
• Brandon Bell — 2 games
• Grant Haley — 2 games
• Wendy Laurent — 2 games
• Gary Wooten Jr. — 2 games
• Jordan Lucas — 1 game
• Evan Schwan — 1 game
• Koa Farmer — 1 game
• Angelo Mangiro – 1 game
• Chris Gulla – 1 game
• Additionally, Penn State has started 34 different players on offense and defense this season. Last season, the Nittany Lions started 36 players on offense and defense.
• Penn State has used five different starting lineups on defense this season, while the offense has used four different starting lineups due to injury.
QUARTERBACKS BEWARE
• With 4.17 sacks per game, Penn State is a mere 0.03 sacks per game behind Pittsburgh (4.20) for the national lead.
• Penn State is tied for the lead in total sacks with Oklahoma State with 25. • Senior defensive end Carl Nassib has recorded a sack in each game this season. He leads the nation with 10.0 sacks (all solo) for an FBS-leading average of 1.67 per game.
• Nassib’s 10.0 sacks this season are the most by a Nittany Lion since Aaron Maybin had 12 sacks in the 2008 season.
• The Nittany Lions made the most of their few chances for sacks against Army’s run-heavy triple-option offense, totaling more sacks (3) than passing attempts (1) and completions (1).
• Sophomore linebacker Jason Cabinda registered two sacks in the Army win, including on fourth down to end the Black Knights’ comeback hopes.
• The Nittany Lion defense racked up four sacks against Indiana, which had only allowed three sacks all season entering the game.
