No. 1 Penn State Blanks Pittsburgh, 31-0

PITTSBURGH —  Penn State fullback Tim Manoa had better luck dodging Pittsburgh’s defense than he did the oranges tossed by the unbeaten Nittany Lions’ happy fans in Pitt Stadium.

Manoa ran for two touchdowns, one on a 60-yard run, and set up Penn State’s first score during a 21-point second quarter with a 23-yard run as the Orange Bowl-bound, No. 1-ranked Lions crushed Pittsburgh, 31-0, Saturday night to complete an 11-0 regular season.

Manoa raced untouched through the right side of Pitt’s defense on his 60-yard run with 6:34 remaining in the first half to make it 14-0, then endured a shower of fruit that splattered the Pitt Stadium end zone.

“I think that’s the fastest I ever ran,” said Manoa, a 225-pound fullback and Pittsburgh native. “I think we proved we can be the No. 1 team in the nation.”

Just 19 seconds after Manoa’s score, linebacker Pete Giftopoulos fell on a fumble by Pitt quarterback John Congemi in the end zone to increase the lead to 21-0.

Penn State Coach Joe Paterno was more eager to talk about the Nittany Lions’ next game--their Orange Bowl showdown against Oklahoma--than Foge Fazio was to discuss what might have been his final game as Pitt’s coach. Fazio has not yet been told whether he will return in 1986.

“I’m pleased with the way we’re playing. This is what we wanted to do, this is where we wanted to be,” Paterno said. “We’re going to take some time off and enjoy this, but we have another tough game after this. An 11-0 record is not easy to do, but they did it. If you think you’re going to win them all, you’re in another world.”

“I don’t know if there were any positive aspects to this game,” Fazio said. “We had a lot of breakdowns. I’m very disappointed in the way we played this season, but I haven’t thought too much, in retrospect, about the season.”

The loss could be costly to Penn State since running back D.J. Dozier, who gained 57 yards in 13 carries, suffered a dislocated elbow. He is expected to miss a month of practice but could be ready for the Orange Bowl.

Manoa’s 23-yard burst set up Dozier’s 7-yard touchdown run early in the second period. Manoa added a 3-yard scoring run in the fourth period, when Massimo Manca kicked a 40-yard field goal.

The victory was the Nittany Lions’ first over Pitt (5-5-1) since 1982.