Oct. 7, 2010
By Lou Prato
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -
When the Illinois football team trots into Beaver Stadium late Saturday morning, the thousands of Penn State alumni in the 107,000-plus crowd should stand up and give them a rousing cheer. That's because the University of Illinois is credited by some historians as the creator of the annual Homecoming football game that's now an important traditional ritual throughout college football.
It first happened in 1910 and Illinois has played a Homecoming game every year since. However, other colleges have disputed the Illini's illustrious place in college football history, Baylor and Missouri in particular. Baylor asserts that it played the first Homecoming game in 1909 but admits it did not hold another until 1915. Missouri's first game was a year after the Illinois Homecoming, but several sources, including Wikipedia, the free, internet encyclopedia states that the NCAA has recognized Missouri as the inventor of Homecoming. However, that isn't true. "We list no `official' NCAA marks prior to 1937," Jim Wright, the NCAA Director of Statistics, wrote in an e-mail. "Also, since homecoming really isn't even a statistical measure, it would not be likely we've ever really gotten into that. It certainly is not anything we list in our records book." Schools such as Michigan (1897), Northern Illinois (1906) and Indiana (1909) also claim to have originated the first Homecoming Day. Although all of those colleges did indeed start a Homecoming Day of some type in those years, all of their circumstances and details were different. None of them used the formal title at the time and a football game was not always part of the event. What is true is this: Illinois called its special day for alumni "Homecoming," and the reason for doing it was because of a football game on Oct. 15, 1910 against the school's biggest rival, the University of Chicago, which was coached by the great Amos Alonzo Stagg. The Illini had not beaten Stagg's team for seven years, and three students came up with the idea of bringing back the alumni, especially the ones who had endured those series of defeats, to help energize the football team and, perhaps, intimidate the visitors with a large, noisy crowd. The Illinois student newspaper quickly backed the idea and on May 24, 1910, the college's administration officially approved of Homecoming Weekend for Oct. 14-15. Homecoming Day turned out just as the students and newspaper had hoped, as Illinois beat Chicago, 3-0.
Penn State was a "Johnny-come-lately" to the Homecoming football game tradition, starting in 1920 with a game--and a 14-7 victory--over Dartmouth. That makes this year's game the 91st for Penn State, and the home team has a dominant record of 65-20-5. Maybe that's because sometimes the Homecoming foes in earlier decades were a weaker opponent, with a victory virtually assured to please the spirited old grads in the grandstands.
However, that has not always been the case, particularly in the first 10 years or so after the Nittany Lions first Homecoming game, nor since 1993 when Penn State began play in the Big Ten Conference. After winning 21 straight Homecoming games between 1971-1991 and another six straight from 1993-1998, Penn State lost three of six games from 1999-2004--including one of the most devastating losses in team history, the 24-23 win by Minnesota in 1999--before starting on another winning streak that stands at five entering this weekend.
This is the third time Illinois has been Penn State's Homecoming opponent, with the Lions having won in 2000, 39-25, and 2006, 26-12. This week's game will tie the Fighting Illini with Purdue, Minnesota and Michigan State as playing the most Homecoming Games among Big Ten teams, although the Lions' one tie and two defeats with the Spartans was before they joined the league in 1953.
Long-time Eastern rival Syracuse has been the most frequent Homecoming opponent, with 16 games between 1924 and 1986. Penn State won 10, lost five and tied one. West Virginia is the next most frequent opposition, with Penn State winning seven of the eight games from 1940-1989.
As to which were the best games and the worst games in Penn State's 90-year Homecoming Day history, here is one person's selection, in chronological order:
BEST
Oct. 20, 1923 - Penn State 21, Navy 3 - In what is arguably the greatest all-around one-man performance in Penn State football history, halfback "Light Horse" Harry Wilson scores three touchdowns on a 55-yard interception, a 95-yard kickoff return and a 72-yard punt return as the Nittany Lions upset Navy before a standing-room only crowd of 20,000. To top it all off, Wilson also was the holder on the three extra points kicked by quarterback Mike Palm.
Nov. 7, 1925 - Penn State 0, Notre Dame 0 - As a sellout crowd of more than 20,000 look on, Penn State ties Knute Rockne's heavily favored Notre Dame team in the rain and heavy mud. The Irish lose two of three fumbles and the Lions lose two of four fumbles as both teams miss field goals in their only close scoring attempts, Notre Dame from the 13-yard line and Penn State from the 34.
Oct. 26, 1929 - Penn State 6, Lafayette 3 - With a win virtually assured by running out the clock with 15 seconds left, Lafayette surprisingly punts on third down. Cooper French takes the punt on the State 40-yard line, and with tacklers ready to bury him, he throws the ball to his roommate Frank Diedrich, about 15 feet away, who runs for the winning touchdown--a play the two close friend later say they had been practicing since prep school.
Nov. 2, 1968 - Penn State 28, Army 24 - On the verge of a major upset over undefeated No. 4 Penn State, Army scores with 2:29 remaining to trail by just five points and lines up for their specialty, an onside kick. The boot is fumbled by a Penn State lineman and a horde of Nittany Lion and Army players jump on the ball. Suddenly, the board squirts from the pile where All-American tight end Ted Kwalick picks it up and runs unmolested for a 53-yard touchdown that wins the game.
Oct. 29, 1994 - Penn State 63, Ohio State 14 - This is one of the most satisfying Homecoming games in history as undefeated and No. 1 Penn State hands No. 14 Ohio State the Buckeyes' worst defeat in 52 years with an offensive performance that netted 527 yards. Tailback Ki-Jana Carter scores four touchdowns and quarterback Kerry Collins throws for two more scores while the Lion defense limits Ohio State to 214 yards and intercept three passes. "They put on a clinic," said OSU coach John Cooper. The following day, though, Penn State inexplicably falls to No. 2 in the Associated Press poll.
Oct. 18, 2008 - Penn State 46, Michigan 17 - In an electrifying night time atmosphere, Penn State ends its frustration against Michigan before the largest crowd ever to see a Penn State Homecoming game, 110,017, but it didn't happen until the Lions came from behind a 17-7 second quarter deficit. Jared Odrick's end zone sack with 4:39 left in the third quarter finally put the Lions ahead, 19-17, and they turned the game into a rout in the final period.
WORST
Oct. 31, 1931 - Pitt 41, Penn State 6 - With de-emphasis of athletics in its fifth year and no scholarship players on the team, Penn State is thoroughly beaten by its No. 1 rival that is contending for another national championship. Pitt coach Jock Sutherland benches his starters and plays his third and fourth string for most of the game. The Lions end the season with their worst record in 18 years at 2-8.
Oct. 16, 1954 - West Virginia 19, Penn State 14 - A 3-0 undefeated Penn State team wanted to avenge a bitter loss to West Virginia the previous season and was favored over the ranked (No. 14) and equally unbeaten Mountaineers. But in a well-played, tight game that saw the Lions trail early 6-0 and then take a 14-12 lead midway in the fourth quarter, the Mountaineers came back to go ahead for good, 19-14, but had to recover a Penn State fumble with less than a minute left inside their 35-yard line to clinch the victory.
Oct. 17, 1970 - Syracuse 24, Penn State 7 - A Syracuse team with a 1-3 record, embarrasses the Lions by turning an interception and punt return into first half touchdowns and then keeps the home team from scoring three times from inside the 10-yard line in the second half. Penn State also fails to take advantage of five fumble recoveries and loses for the third time in its first five games. The next week, sophomore John Hufnagel is promoted to starting quarterback and the Lions don't lose again the rest of the year.
Oct. 17, 1992 - Boston College 34, Penn State 32 - Unbeaten No. 20 Boston College shocks once-beaten, No. 9 Penn State in the seventh game of the season with three touchdowns in the last five minutes of the first half to take a commanding 28-10 lead that increases to 35-10 midway in the third quarter. But the Lions put on an exciting, desperate rally in the fourth quarter that falls short when BC intercepts a pass at its own 17-yard line with 1:29 to clinch its first win at Penn State after nine defeats dating to 1949.
Nov. 6, 1999 - Minnesota 24, Penn State 23 - Minnesota destroys the national championship dreams of unbeaten No. 2 Penn State (9-0) as time was running out in the fourth quarter with a "Hail Mary" pass on a fourth-and-16 at the Penn State 40-yard line and a 34-yard field goal. The devastating loss sent the Lions spiraling into tailspin as they lost their last two regular season games and finished the season at 10-3.
Oct. 23, 2004 - Iowa 6, Penn State 4 -Iowa used a pair of first half field goals to beat Penn State, which missed two fields, gave up five turnovers and had numerous ill-timed penalties. The setback to the Hawkeyes was Penn State's last Homecoming loss.
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