They're No. 1 In Paterno Poll

MIAMI -- Penn State coach Joe Paterno called a band of Nittany Lions whooping it up in the dressing room New Year's night "my best team." "They're the best balanced outfit I've ever had," said Paterno, who finished his third undefeated season in eight years as a head coach with a 16-9 Orange Bowl victory over Louisiana State. Besides runners such as Heisman Trophy winner John Cappelletti and defenders such as All-American tackle Randy Crowder, Paterno said, "we've got two wide receivers like we've never had before on one team -- (Gary) Hayman and (Chuck) Herd. They're great."

It was Herd's one-handed stab of quarterback Tom Shuman's bomb in the second period that gave Penn State its first touchdown and go-ahead points on a 72-yard pass and run score. Paterno revealed for the first time after the game that Cappelletti ran on a slightly sprained left ankle and had not practiced since the injury last Wednesday. When asked about it, Cappelletti refused to use it as an alibi for averaging only 1.9 yards on 26 carries in contrast to his regular season average of 5.3 yards per rush. "No, it didn't bother me," Cappelletti said. "Their defense just played well. Their linebackers were plugging the holes. "I don't feel badly. I just tried to do the best I could." Paterno said he thought "Cappy played a good game," despite netting only 50 yards. "When we gave him running room, he got the yards. The trouble was we weren't making the holes. "I knew darn well we'd have to throw against LSU," Paterno added. "They're so quick we had to adjust." Cappelletti revealed many of the Penn State players, including himself, discarded their shoes in the second period in favor of shoes provided by the Orange Bowl shoe bank. Even after that, the slipping continued on the artificial turf, dampened by a pre-game shower.

Paterno had the last word on how good Penn State is. "I've just conducted my own poll -- the Paterno Poll --and Penn State is No. 1," he said. Louisiana State coach Charlie McClendon, finishing his season with a 9-3 record, refused to offer any excuses. "We played probably as well as we can play as individuals, but not as well as we can play as a team," he said. There weren't any cheers in the LSU locker room, but the players indicated a feeling they had put forth a good effort. McClendon was especially proud of the way LSU played Cappelletti. "I told my guys, 'Wherever he goes go with him,' " said McClendon. "'If you don't stop Capelletti, you're in trouble.' He reminds me a little bit of Billy Cannon," McClendon added. "He's bow-legged, has that balance and you don't knock him down," Middle linebacker Warren Capone said he told Cappelletti, "Nice run" throughout the game and explained, "I like to compliment him every time he runs the ball because he's so good. I think you can look back at our statistics against the good runners and we always play well," added Capone. "When they got the ball we just went to our regular pursuit angles. We just did a good job, it's as simple as that."

Concerning the last play of the first half when LSU had a first down on the Penn State 5 with only 11 seconds left, McClendon explained: "It was supposed to be a play that would either score or stop the clock. "If he caught it, he would score. If he didn't, it would stop the clock. He caught it, but he got nailed, I mean nailed right there. "The man that got him wasn't even supposed to be anywhere near," said McClendon. McClendon wouldn't compare Penn State with Southeastern Conference champion Alabama. "As I told my players, there's no comparison. They're two different types of teams all together. Penn State is very bulky." Alabama had been ranked No. 1 before losing, 24-23, to Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl New Year's Eve.

[source: upi]