UNIVERSITY PARK — Conference realignment is in full swing as conference play began for the Penn State football team on Saturday, Sept. 28. Following a clash with a familiar foe in Illinois, the Nittany Lions will then take on a Big Ten newcomer, UCLA on Saturday, Oct. 5.
The last time the Bruins and the Nittany Lions met on the gridiron was in 1968. At the time, Penn State was ranked third in the country and had not lost since its matchup against UCLA in the 1967 season.
The game took place at the historical Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Penn State got their revenge by winning 21-6. The Nittany Lions finished the season undefeated, eventually beating No. 6 Kansas in the Orange Bowl.
The 1968 matchup was the sixth and final time that UCLA and Penn State would meet before 2024. All six of the games came between 1962 and 1968.
The series record is 4-2 in favor of UCLA with an aggregate score of 100-131 once again in favor of the Bruins.
That was 56 years ago though. To put it into perspective on the day of the last meeting between the two teams, Oct. 12, 1968, the GIs for Peace march to end the war in Vietnam was taking place.
This week, the two teams meet for the first time in the 21st century and as Big Ten conference rivals.
Penn State comes into the game as a heavy favorite and needs a win entering its hardest stretch of the 2024 season. Drew Allar and company will try to take advantage of the Bruins’ questionable pass defense. UCLA is last in the Big Ten with 295.3 passing yards given up per game.
