1983 Penn State Nittany Lions football team

1983 Penn State Nittany Lions football
Aloha Bowl champion
Aloha Bowl, W 13–10 vs. Washington
Conference	Independent
Ranking
Coaches	No. 17
Record	8–4–1
Head coach	Joe Paterno (18th season)
Offensive coordinator	Dick Anderson
Defensive coordinator	Jerry Sandusky
Home stadium	Beaver Stadium (Capacity: 83,770)

1983 NCAA Division I-A independents football records

	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 1 Miami (FL)		–		–				11	–	1	–	0
Virginia Tech		–		–				9	–	2	–	0
No. 19 Boston College		–		–				9	–	3	–	0
No. 16 West Virginia		–		–				9	–	3	–	0
No. 20 East Carolina		–		–				8	–	3	–	0
No. 18 Pittsburgh		–		–				8	–	3	–	1
Florida State		–		–				8	–	4	–	0
Penn State		–		–				8	–	4	–	1
Southern Miss		–		–				7	–	4	–	0
Memphis State		–		–				6	–	4	–	1
Notre Dame		–		–				7	–	5	–	0
Syracuse		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
South Carolina		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Cincinnati			–					4	–	6	–	1
Southwestern Louisiana		–		–				4	–	6	–	0
Temple		–		–				4	–	7	–	0
Tulane		–		–				4	–	7	–	0
Louisville		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
Navy		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
Rutgers		–		–				3	–	8	–	0
Army		–		–				2	–	9	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1983 Penn State Nittany Lions football team represented the Pennsylvania State University in the 1983 NCAA Division I-A football season. The team was coached by Joe Paterno and played its home games in Beaver Stadium in University Park, Pennsylvania.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 29	vs. No. 1 Nebraska	No. 4	Giants Stadium East Rutherford, NJ (Kickoff Classic)	KATZ	L 6–44	71,123
September 10	Cincinnati	No. 20	Beaver Stadium University Park, PA		L 3–14	83,683
September 17	No. 13 Iowa		Beaver Stadium University Park, PA		L 34–42	84,628
September 24	at Temple		Veterans Stadium Philadelphia, PA		W 23–18	35,760
October 1	at Rutgers		Giants Stadium East Rutherford, NJ		W 36–25	32,804
October 8	No. 3 Alabama		Beaver Stadium University Park, PA (rivalry)	CBS	W 34–28	85,614
October 15	at Syracuse		Carrier Dome Syracuse, NY (rivalry)		W 17–6	50,010
October 22	No. 4 West Virginia		Beaver Stadium University Park, PA (rivalry)		W 41–23	86,309
October 29	at No. 19 Boston College		Sullivan Stadium Foxborough, MA	ABC	L 17–27	56,188
November 5	Brown		Beaver Stadium University Park, PA		W 38–21	84,670
November 12	Notre Dame		Beaver Stadium University Park, PA	ESPN (tape delay)	W 34–30	85,899
November 19	at No. 17 Pittsburgh		Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA (rivalry)		T 24–24	60,283
December 26	vs. Washington		Aloha Stadium Honolulu, HI (Aloha Bowl)	ESPN	W 13–10	37,212
Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Roster

1983 Penn State Nittany Lions football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class C 58 Nick Haden Jr OT 72 Ron Heller Sr WR 82 Kenny Jackson Sr RB 29 Tony Mumford Jr	Defense Pos. # Name Class LB 95 Rogers Alexander Jr LB 31 Shane Conlan So LB 53 Don Graham So S 22 Ray Isom So LB 55 Tim Johnson So LB 97 Scott Radecic Sr S 32 Mark Robinson Sr DB 43 Mike Zordich So	Special teams Pos. # Name Class PK 10 Massimo Manca Fr	Head coach Joe Paterno Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

Post season

NFL Draft

Eight Nittany Lions were drafted in the 1984 NFL Draft.

Round	Pick	Overall	Name	Position	Team
1st	4	4	Kenny Jackson	Wide receiver	Philadelphia Eagles
2nd	6	34	Scott Radecic	Linebacker	Kansas City Chiefs
3rd	14	70	Jon Williams	Running back	New England Patriots
4th	6	90	Mark Robinson	Defensive back	Kansas City Chiefs
4th	28	112	Ron Heller	Offensive tackle	Tampa Bay Buccaneers
7th	8	176	Harry Hamilton	Defensive back	New York Jets
8th	1	197	Kevin Baugh	–	Houston Oilers
9th	18	242	George Reynolds	–	Los Angeles Rams