08/25/96 USC W 09/07/96 LOUISVILLE W 09/14/96 NORTHERN ILLINOIS W 09/21/96 at Temple W 09/28/96 at Wisconsin W 10/05/96 at Ohio State L 10/12/96 PURDUE W 10/19/96 IOWA L 10/26/96 at Indiana W 11/02/96 NORTHWESTERN W 11/16/96 at Michigan W 11/23/96 MICHIGAN STATE W
Composite Big Ten Schedule for 1996
| Date | Opponent | Site | Series | Last Game/Result | Expected Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sept. 6 | Pittsburgh | Beaver Stadium | 48-41-4 | 1992; Penn State, 57-13 | W 34-17 |
| Sept. 13 | Temple | Beaver Stadium | 29-3-1 | 1996; Penn State, 41-0 | W 52-10 |
| Sept. 20 | at Louisville | Cardinal Stadium | 1-0-0 | 1996; Penn State, 24-7 | W 57-21 |
| Oct. 4 | at Illinois | Memorial Stadium | 5-1-0 | 1994; Penn State, 35-31 | W 41-6 |
| Oct. 11 | Ohio State | Beaver Stadium | 7-5-0 | 1996; Ohio State, 38-7 | W 31-27 |
| Oct. 18 | Minnesota (Homecoming) | Beaver Stadium | 2-0-0 | 1994; Penn State, 56-3 | W 16-15 |
| Nov. 1 | at Northwestern | Dyche Stadium | 3-1-0 | 1996; Penn State, 34-9 | W 30-27 |
| Nov. 8 | Michigan | Beaver Stadium | 3-1-0 | 1996; Penn State, 29-17 | Loss 8-36 |
| Nov. 15 | at Purdue | Ross-Ade Stadium | 2-1-1 | 1996; Penn State, 31-14 | Win |
| Nov. 22 | Wisconsin | Beaver Stadium | 1-3-0 | 1996; Penn State, 23-20 | W 35-10 |
| Nov. 29 | at Michigan State | Spartan Stadium | 5-8-1 | 1996; Penn State, 32-29 | Meltdown |
Composite Big Ten Schedule for 1997
Sept. 5 Southern Mississippi [ABC 3:30 p.m.]
Sept. 12 Bowling Green [ESPN Regional 12:05 p.m.]
Sept. 19 at Pittsburgh [CBS 3:30 p.m.]
Oct. 3 at Ohio State [ABC noon]
Oct. 10 at Minnesota
Oct. 17 Purdue [ABC 3:30 p.m.]
Oct. 24 "Injury Recovery Day"
Oct. 31 Illinois
Nov. 7 at Michigan [ABC noon]
Nov. 14 Northwestern
Nov. 21 at Wisconsin
Nov. 28 Michigan State [ABC 1 p.m.]
Bold denotes home game
Consensus finish for this year's Big race is:
Sept. 4 Akron
Sept. 11 Pitt
Sept. 18 at Miami
Sept. 25 Indiana
Oct. 3 at Iowa
Oct. 16 Ohio State
Oct. 23 at Purdue
Oct. 30 at Illinois
Nov. 6 Minnesota
Nov. 13 Michigan
Nov. 20 at Michigan State
Bold denotes home game
Sept. 2 Toledo
Sept. 9 SMU
Sept. 16 at Pittsburgh
Sept. 23 at Ohio State
Sept. 30 Purdue
Oct. 7 at Minnesota
Oct. 21 Illinois
Oct. 28 at Indiana
Nov. 4 Iowa
Nov. 11 at Michigan
Nov. 18 Michigan State
Bold denotes home game