THE UNBEATENS . . .AND THEN THERE WERE THREE : On This Day, Penn State Sure Looks Like It’s No. 1

It did not matter that Notre Dame Coach Gerry Faust would not answer a question about his job security, or lack of it. Neither did it matter that the equally elusive Penn State coach, Joe Paterno, avoided a question about his team’s No. 1 ranking.

All the answers were on the rain-drenched field at Beaver Stadium Saturday for an estimated crowd of 84,000 and a national television audience to see:

Penn State 36, Notre Dame 6.

Penn State was that good.

Notre Dame was that bad.

For the Nittany Lions, it was about time. Even though they entered this game with a 9-0 record, they had won seven of those games by an average of four points, had to come from behind in five of them and actually had been outgained by their opponents.

Their critics said they were No. 1 in name only.

While that may still be the case, the Nittany Lions at least looked like a No. 1 team Saturday. Even Paterno had to admit that. He would not, however, say that they should be the No. 1 team.

“I don’t think we proved anything this week,” he said. “I think it’s ridiculous to discuss who’s No. 1. Nobody’s anything until the season is over. I’ve said that about 50 times. Whatever we are at the end of the season is what we deserve.”

Neither would Paterno discuss Penn State’s bowl preference, although an Orange Bowl official, Nick Crane, said at halftime that he is extremely confident the Nittany Lions will be in Miami on Jan. 1.

The Orange Bowl could provide a game between the nation’s No. 1 and No. 2 teams if Penn State beats Pittsburgh and Nebraska beats Oklahoma next Saturday. Bowl invitations will be extended after Saturday’s games.

“I’m not going to spend a lot of time thinking about the bowls,” Paterno said. “Those things tend to take care of themselves.

“Pitt beat us by 20 something points (31-11) last year. We’ve got a tough job going down to Pittsburgh. We’ve got to maintain our intensity.”

Penn State was the more intense of the two teams Saturday, which the Nittany Lions attributed to their bitter memory of a 44-7 loss to the Irish last season in South Bend, Ind.

“It’s tough to live with those kinds of losses when you are as proud of your tradition as we are of ours,” Paterno said. “It was very, very important for us to play well against Notre Dame.”

As the Nittany Lions were building a 23-0 halftime lead and a 36-0 lead after three quarters, Penn State quarterback John Shaffer said he had no sympathy for the Irish.

“Not after what they did to us last year,” Shaffer said.

The junior quarterback, however, said he does sympathize with Faust.

Shaffer was promoted to the varsity at Cincinnati Moeller High School for the final three games of his sophomore year, which was Faust’s final year as the high school’s head coach before he moved to Notre Dame.

“I feel badly for Coach Faust because I feel he had a lot to do with my career,” Shaffer said. “When I decided to come to Penn State instead of Notre Dame, he told me he hoped I won every game each year except for one. Those were my sentiments toward him.”

Notre Dame’s loss Saturday was Faust’s 24th in five seasons. No other Notre Dame coach has ever lost more games, although Faust’s winning percentage is better than that of Joe Kuharich. Kuharich lost 23 games in four seasons.

Faust said before the season the Irish would have to finish 9-2 or 8-3 for him to have his contract extended beyond this season. Their loss Saturday was their fourth in nine games. It also was their worst defeat since the final game of the 1974 season, when USC beat them, 55-24.

But Faust would not contribute to speculation after Saturday’s game about whether he will return next season.

“Why don’t you talk about the kids who played well and forget about me?” he said.

Start with Shaffer, who also has had critics this season as the Penn State offense has played just well enough to win. Some fans prefer the second-team quarterback, junior Matt Knizner.

But on Penn State’s first possession Saturday, Shaffer completed two third-down passes for first downs and then threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to tailback D.J. Dozier to complete a 79-yard, 11-play drive and give the Nittany Lions a 7-0 lead.

In the Nittany Lions’ next eight possessions, they scored seven times. They had two more touchdowns and five field goals by Massimo Manca.

Paterno has been criticized this season for his conservatism on offense, but he had a more balanced game plan against the Irish. The Nittany Lions threw 15 passes in the first half, including a double-reverse flea flicker. It didn’t work, but it was the thought that counted.

“My brother called me Tuesday night with that one,” Paterno said. His brother George, a former football coach, is the athletic director at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy.

“Thank God it didn’t work,” Paterno said. “He would have been calling me every week for the rest of my career.”

Penn State was aided considerably by the Irish. Notre Dame had six turnovers, including three interceptions thrown by quarterback Steve Beuerlein, and a blocked punt. The Irish fumbled six times, losing two.

Seven of the Nittany Lions’ first 10 possessions started in Notre Dame territory. They had one drive of minus seven yards and another of minus four yards and managed to get field goals from both of them.

Some of Notre Dame’s difficulties might have been caused by the driving rain. Irish tailback Allen Pinkett gained 189 yards and 217 yards and scored four touchdowns in each of the last two games against Penn State, but he was held to 61 yards in 12 carries Saturday.

“The field was bad, but both teams had to play on it,” Penn State linebacker Rogers Alexander said. “On the other hand, Pinkett is one of the few backs in the country who can make a 90 degree cut.

“Today, he would have had to be Superman to make a 90 degree cut. For that reason, I was glad to see the rain.”

The rain seemed to have no effect on Penn State, which had no turnovers.

“To be a great football team,” Paterno said, “you’ve got to beat the elements; you’ve got to beat the other team; and you’ve got to keep from beating yourself.”

Notre Dame could do none of the three.