After 74 years, Temple finally beats Penn State

By foxsports
Published

Temple beat Penn State 27-10 on Saturday. Prior to this, it had been quite a while since the Owls had downed the Nittany Lions in a football game.

How long, you ask?

Try 1941, and no, Joe Paterno was not coaching the Nittany Lions that season. The overall rivalry wore a 39-3-1 advantage for Penn State heading into this year's game.

The Owls were not monumental underdogs despite the track record, coming in getting seven points if you follow that sort of thing.

However, back to 1941. What else was going on in the world in 1941?

• The year is dominated in history by the Pearl Harbor attack on Dec. 7.

• A college football game in Youngstown, Ohio, included something used for the first time: the penalty flag.

• Joe DiMaggio had a 56-game hitting streak in 1941.

• Ted Williams hit .406, the last time a major-league player broke the .400 mark.

• There was no Tour De France due to World War II. The British Open was also skipped for the same reason.

• If you were looking for an omen, maybe this would be it: Whirlaway won the Triple Crown that year, and American Pharoah captured the trifecta this year.