Finally there is a "no huddle" version of the 1994 PSU-Illinois game

[Conewago]

If you haven't seen this game before, then you need to watch it right now - today, this week - or you don't deserve to call yourself a Penn State football fan or alum or whatever:



In its own way, this is one of the most amazing performances by any football team ever.

By the way, we all have heard about this great offense, but the 1994 defense was certainly good. I would call them "above-average" at a minimum. The numbers bear that out as Special Rating System rates them the #23 defense for 1994. And, yes, Penn State dropped 63 points (56 of them offensively) on the #3 defense in the US, Ohio State.

1994 College Football School Ratings | College Football at Sports-Reference.com

Check out the 1994 College Football School Ratings and more about College Football at Sports-Reference.com

www.sports-reference.com

This defense went down 21-0 on the road but fought just as hard as our offense to give said offense a chance to win.

The Rose Bowl is another good example. Oregon, which blew 2-3 scoring chances, got something like 4.6 median average yards per play in the first half on the basis of throwing the ball dramatically more than they had all season. But the Ducks were held under 2 median average yards per play in the second half. 4.6 is a mediocre or bad defensive performance; under 2 is an astoundingly great performance. This defense's ability to make second half adjustments was quintessentially Nittany Lion.

Considering how truly good the defense was, and considering how Joe pulled the starters by the middle of the 4th quarter in all but TWO games (Michigan + Illinois), thus deflating Penn State's scores AND making the defense look worse, there's really no question that Penn State was not just the "best offense ever," but the best TEAM ever. The Big Ten, in the mid 1990s, was WAY better than people realize - basically what the SEC claims it is now. And Penn State, running a "vanilla" offense as always, simply annihilated the league as well as everyone else. 1971 Nebraska is really the only team even remotely worthy of being compared to this Nittany Lion team.

By the way, that Indiana game - 35-29 - is to be ignored because, if you watch it, it was both a screwjob by the refs that IU wasn't down 42-14 and a total fluke.

 

[pennstatepelly]

I remember every play. I was a kid. My dad took me to that game. We sat right beside a huge column in the stadium. I’ll never forget it. The Illini jumped out big. Their fans were giving it to us. My dad patted my leg and said “just relax”. That 96 yard drive went from us being overrated, to us tying the game, to their fans finally not saying a single word to us as we left. One of my best football moments with my dad.

 

[Wallace Breen]

Going to have to question their methods. Arizona at #13? While the 94 Desert Swarm took a small step back compared to 93 (the GOAT), it was still the best in the country by a wide margin. Colorado at #24? Honestly, the site's ratings are a joke. Their SOS calculation is pretty bad. Almost nonsensical. Florida and Florida State ahead of Nebraska and Colorado in a year when the Big Eight was easily the second best conference in the country?

 

[Rip_E_2_Joe_PA]

If you haven't seen this game before, then you need to watch it right now - today, this week - or you don't deserve to call yourself a Penn State football fan or alum or whatever:

View embedded media

In its own way, this is one of the most amazing performances by any football team ever.

By the way, we all have heard about this great offense, but the 1994 defense was certainly good. I would call them "above-average" at a minimum. The numbers bear that out as Special Rating System rates them the #23 defense for 1994. And, yes, Penn State dropped 63 points (56 of them offensively) on the #3 defense in the US, Ohio State.

1994 College Football School Ratings | College Football at Sports-Reference.com

Check out the 1994 College Football School Ratings and more about College Football at Sports-Reference.com

www.sports-reference.com

This defense went down 21-0 on the road but fought just as hard as our offense to give said offense a chance to win.

The Rose Bowl is another good example. Oregon, which blew 2-3 scoring chances, got something like 4.6 median average yards per play in the first half on the basis of throwing the ball dramatically more than they had all season. But the Ducks were held under 2 median average yards per play in the second half. 4.6 is a mediocre or bad defensive performance; under 2 is an astoundingly great performance. This defense's ability to make second half adjustments was quintessentially Nittany Lion.

Considering how truly good the defense was, and considering how Joe pulled the starters by the middle of the 4th quarter in all but TWO games (Michigan + Illinois), thus deflating Penn State's scores AND making the defense look worse, there's really no question that Penn State was not just the "best offense ever," but the best TEAM ever. The Big Ten, in the mid 1990s, was WAY better than people realize - basically what the SEC claims it is now. And Penn State, running a "vanilla" offense as always, simply annihilated the league as well as everyone else. 1971 Nebraska is really the only team even remotely worthy of being compared to this Nittany Lion team.

By the way, that Indiana game - 35-29 - is to be ignored because, if you watch it, it was both a screwjob by the refs that IU wasn't down 42-14 and a total fluke.

The wuss league had to claim it was a down year in the Big 10 to Vote PSU out of number 1 that season. The first 2-3 rounds of the NFL proved how really Bush league the B10 leaders were. The Pac10 dominated the first 3 rounds of NFL draft with the B10 placing a couple players less than the Pac 10 in those first 3 rounds... Every other conference placed nearly no players in those rounds.

The embarrassed eunuchs administering the big fix showed just how envious and ball less they really were. They just could not man up that PSU was the best team in the conference and in the US.

 

[KCLion]

I remember every play. I was a kid. My dad took me to that game. We sat right beside a huge column in the stadium. I’ll never forget it. The Illini jumped out big. Their fans were giving it to us. My dad patted my leg and said “just relax”. That 96 yard drive went from us being overrated, to us tying the game, to their fans finally not saying a single word to us as we left. One of my best football moments with my dad.

I was there as well.

 

[pennstatepelly]

I was there as well.

Similar experience?

 

[KCLion]

Similar experience?

I was not a kid, but was there with my wife and adult brother-in-law and his girlfriend at the time. Was shocked when KiJana fumbled and they got the lead. It felt like every time we got in position to take over the game something else would go wrong.

Despite the Illini being a pretty good team, the fans around us before the game were really talking up PSU and badmouthing their team. Very cordial and polite conversation until they got the lead and momentum. Then we had them getting in our faces and mimicking the canons they fire off every time they score. It got really really obnoxious until . . . .

That final drive against the wind in the rain was a thing of beauty. Watching the PSU team hand-in-hand during the drive was special (I have the print). As we walked out of the stadium, we proudly held our chests out with PENN STATE in block letters on our sweatshirts and their wasn’t a single chirp out of any of them.

It was a great day!

 

[lionsnphils]

remember that game well- wasn’t married too long and was still in the make mistakes mood. (You know when you get in trouble for doing the things you did before you were married)
We went out to dinner and once I had to make a trip to the car to check the score. She was livid- it was really her fault anyhow because she wouldn’t let me take the little radio into the restaurant.

The Drive was starting when we were done and returned to the car. So I did get to listen to that.

 

[Wallace Breen]

I was not a kid, but was there with my wife and adult brother-in-law and his girlfriend at the time. Was shocked when KiJana fumbled and they got the lead. It felt like every time we got in position to take over the game something else would go wrong.

Despite the Illini being a pretty good team, the fans around us before the game were really talking up PSU and badmouthing their team. Very cordial and polite conversation until they got the lead and momentum. Then we had them getting in our faces and mimicking the canons they fire off every time they score. It got really really obnoxious until . . . .

That final drive against the wind in the rain was a thing of beauty. Watching the PSU team hand-in-hand during the drive was special (I have the print). As we walked out of the stadium, we proudly held our chests out with PENN STATE in block letters on our sweatshirts and their wasn’t a single chirp out of any of them.

It was a great day!

The one thing people never talk about when it comes to the 94 team is how ridiculously strong the schedule was.

 

[NealPaige]

Was at that game, a week before I got married. Was at the urinal at halftime, catching so much shi# from Illinois fans, and after doing my business, yelled back, "this game is far from over". I just felt so confident with that offense. When Milne went in for the touchdown, I went beserk. One of the happiest strolls to the car in my life.

Still married, a little more difficult than a 96 yard drive for a touchdown in the waning minutes.

 

[JWB389]

I forgot that game ended with an interception in the endzone, which could have been a disaster of a play for us if completed. Think '99 Minny.

 

[PSU Soupy]

One of the more interesting parts if I heard correctly was that Joe Jurevicous was punting in the game.........

 

[lionsnphils]

One of the more interesting parts if I heard correctly was that Joe Jurevicous was punting in the game.........

You heard correctly - Joe did also punt early on

 

[Conewago]

Going to have to question their methods. Arizona at #13? While the 94 Desert Swarm took a small step back compared to 93 (the GOAT), it was still the best in the country by a wide margin. Colorado at #24? Honestly, the site's ratings are a joke. Their SOS calculation is pretty bad. Almost nonsensical. Florida and Florida State ahead of Nebraska and Colorado in a year when the Big Eight was easily the second best conference in the country?

Florida State was incredible every single year from 1987 to 2000.

The Big 8 was crap in 1994.

Nebraska was good but not great. Basically no better than unbeaten Paterno teams like 1968.

Colorado got thoroughly outplayed by Michigan and Texas but miraculously beat both.

 

[Conewago]

Going to have to question their methods. Arizona at #13? While the 94 Desert Swarm took a small step back compared to 93 (the GOAT), it was still the best in the country by a wide margin. Colorado at #24? Honestly, the site's ratings are a joke. Their SOS calculation is pretty bad. Almost nonsensical. Florida and Florida State ahead of Nebraska and Colorado in a year when the Big Eight was easily the second best conference in the country?

SRS tends to over-favor offensive teams, but is still a good, solid metric.

Nebraska was solid - but not remotely any better than, say, 1968 Penn State - Colorado was lucky but good, and Kansas State was okay. The rest of the Big 8 was trash in 1994.

 

[Conewago]

I remember every play. I was a kid. My dad took me to that game. We sat right beside a huge column in the stadium. I’ll never forget it. The Illini jumped out big. Their fans were giving it to us. My dad patted my leg and said “just relax”. That 96 yard drive went from us being overrated, to us tying the game, to their fans finally not saying a single word to us as we left. One of my best football moments with my dad.

awesome