1961 Pittsburgh Panthers football team

The 1961 Pittsburgh Panthers football team was an American football team that represented the University of Pittsburgh as an independent during the 1961 college football season. In their seventh season under head coach John Michelosen, the Panthers compiled a 3–7 record and were outscored by a total of 209 to 145.^[1]

1961 Pittsburgh Panthers football
Conference	Independent
Record	3–7
Head coach	John Michelosen (7th season)
Home stadium	Pitt Stadium
Seasons ← 1960 1962 →

1961 Eastern college football independents records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
Middlebury			–					5	–	1	–	1
Villanova			–					8	–	2	–	0
Southern Connecticut State			–					7	–	2	–	0
Alfred			–					6	–	2	–	0
Montclair State			–					6	–	2	–	0
Delaware Valley			–					6	–	2	–	0
No. 17 Penn State			–					8	–	3	–	0
No. 14 Syracuse			–					8	–	3	–	0
Trinity (CT)			–					5	–	2	–	1
Holy Cross			–					7	–	3	–	0
C. W. Post			–					6	–	3	–	0
Army			–					6	–	4	–	0
Merchant Marine			–					6	–	4	–	0
Tufts			–					5	–	3	–	0
Rochester			–					5	–	3	–	0
Hamilton			–					4	–	3	–	0
Cortland State			–					4	–	3	–	0
American International			–					5	–	4	–	0
Colgate			–					5	–	4	–	0
Northeastern			–					4	–	4	–	0
Coast Guard			–					4	–	4	–	0
Ithaca			–					4	–	4	–	0
Boston University			–					4	–	5	–	0
Buffalo			–					4	–	5	–	0
Bridgeport			–					4	–	5	–	0
Norwich			–					3	–	4	–	1
Worcester Tech			–					3	–	4	–	0
Boston College			–					4	–	6	–	0
Union (NY)			–					3	–	5	–	0
Pittsburgh			–					3	–	7	–	0
Nichols			–					2	–	3	–	0
Trenton State			–					1	–	6	–	0
King's (PA)			–					1	–	8	–	0
Springfield			–					0	–	7	–	1
Brockport			–					0	–	7	–	0
RPI			–					0	–	7	–	0
Hobart			–					0	–	8	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

Notable players included quarterback James Traficant, who passed for 437 yards and was later a member of U.S. Congress; back Paul Martha, who later became a consensus All-American and played seven years in the National Football League (NFL); Fred Cox, who later played 15 years in the NFL and was twice the NFL scoring leader; and offensive lineman Ed Adamchik.

The team played its home games at Pitt Stadium in Pittsburgh.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 16	at Miami (FL)	Orange Bowl Miami, FL	W 10–7	33,292	[2]
September 30	Baylor	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA	L 13–16	41,194	[3]
October 7	at Washington	Husky Stadium Seattle, WA	L 17–22	54,411	[4]
October 14	West Virginia	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA (rivalry)	L 6–20	28,450	[5][6]
October 21	at UCLA	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, CA	L 6–20	27,688	[7]
October 28	Navy	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA	W 28–14	36,875	[8]
November 4	at Syracuse	Archbold Stadium Syracuse, NY (rivalry)	L 9–28	40,000	[9]
November 11	Notre Dame	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA (rivalry)	L 20–26	50,527	[10]
November 18	USC	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA	W 10–9	34,820	[11]
November 25	Penn State	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA (rivalry)	L 26–47	37,271	[12]

Statistics

The team gained an average of 159.6 rushing yards and 83.8 passing yards per game. On defense, they gave up an average of 178.0 rushing yards and 126.2 passing yards per game.^[13]

Quarterback James Traficant led the team in passing, completing 32 of 67 passes (47.8%) for 437 yards, two touchdowns, and five interceptions.^[13] Trafficant later served in the U.S. Congress but was expelled in 2002 after being convicted of ten felonies.

The team's rushing leaders were Rick Leeson (452 yards, 103 carries, 4.4-yard average), Ed Clark (213 yards, 57 attempts, 3.7-yard average), Paul Martha (212 yards, 44 attempts, 4.8-yard average), Peter Billey (155 yards, 34 attempts, 4.6-yard average), and Fred Cox (136 yards, 46 attempts, 3.0-yard average).^[13]

The receiving leaders were John Kuprok (18 receptions, 247 yards, 13.7-yard average), Fred Cox (12 receptions, 148 yards, 12.3-yard average), and Paul Martha (5 receptions, 144 yards, 28.8-yard average).^[13]

References

1. "1961 Pitt Panthers Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved August 19, 2024.
2. Tommy Fitzgerald (September 17, 1961). "Martha Strikes Hard, Soaks Hurricanes, 10-7". The Miami News. pp. 1C, 7C – via Newspapers.com.
3. Jimmy Jordan (October 1, 1961). "Baylor Stalls Pitt, Hangs on for 16-13 Victory: Last-Quarter Panther Drive Stopped on 8". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. pp. 1, 5 (section 3) – via Newspapers.com.
4. Bob Drum (October 8, 1961). "Washington Shades Pitt, 22 To 17: Huskies Grab Victory In Final Minutes". The Pittsburgh Press. pp. 1, 5 (section 4) – via Newspapers.com.
5. Bob Drum (October 15, 1961). "West Virginia Rocks Pitt, 20-6: Fired-Up Mounties Pull Upset". The Pittsburgh Press. pp. 1, 9 (section 4) – via Newspapers.com.
6. "Pitt loses third game in a row". The Miami News. October 15, 1961. Retrieved January 19, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
7. Jamie Curran (October 22, 1961). "Bruins' Defense Rescues Offense, Beats Pitt, 20-6". The Los Angeles Times. pp. 1, 2 (section H) – via Newspapers.com.
8. Chester L. Smith (October 29, 1961). "Pitt Submerges Navy, 28-14: Panthers End 4-Game Losing Streak Here Before 36,875 Fans". The Pittsburgh Press. pp. 1, 7 (section 3) – via Newspapers.com.
9. "Syracuse Rolls, 28-9; Davis Eclipses Brown". New York Daily News. November 5, 1961. p. 35C – via Newspapers.com.
10. Bob Drum (November 12, 1961). "Notre Dame Tops Pitt, 26-20: 50,527 Fans See Irish Kill Panthers' Last Period Threat". The Pittsburgh Press. pp. 1, 4 (section 8) – via Newspapers.com.
11. Don Griffin (November 19, 1961). "Pitt Edges Southern Cal, 10-9: Trojans Gamble For Victory Fails On Conversion Try". The Pittsburgh Press. pp. 1, 4 (section 4) – via Newspapers.com.
12. "State Goes 'Bowling' Over Pitt Panthers". The Pittsburgh Press. November 26, 1961. p. 2 – via Newspapers.com.
13. "1961 Pittsburgh Panthers Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. May 21, 2016.