Penn State football is set to face Purdue on Saturday — the same day as Halloween. The last time the Nittany Lions played on the spookiest day of the year was in 2020, when Penn State lost 38-25 to Ohio State.

In total, Saturday marks the 22nd time Penn State football will play on Halloween. The Nittany Lions have posted an 11-9-1 record in those games.

Let’s get ready for the Penn State-Purdue game by looking back at Penn State’s Halloween games.

Penn State 6, Dickinson 6 (1888)

Penn State played its first Halloween game 138 years ago, which resulted in the only tie on this list. The game was played on Old Main Lawn and was Penn State’s fourth-ever official football game.

The 1888 season consisted of just three games. Penn State finished 0-2-1 — the only winless season in school history.

Penn State 25, West Virginia 21 (1987)

Somehow, Penn State’s most common Halloween opponent has been West Virginia. The two rivals have met five times on the spookiest day of the year—fitting for how the fans think of each other.

The Mountaineers and the Nittany Lions last met on Halloween in 1987, when Penn State won 25-21.

Penn State 14, Miami 17 (1981)

This edition of Penn State football on Halloween was spookiest for the Nittany Lions. Penn State entered the game No. 1 in the country, but lost to an unranked Miami team.

Kicker Brian Franco missed four field goals in a rainstorm, and the Nittany Lions couldn’t mount a comeback. Penn State lost to Alabama a few weeks later.

Penn State 34, Northwestern 13 (2009)

In 2009, then-No. 12 Penn State overpowered Northwestern on the road on Halloween.

Quarterback Darryl Clark threw for 274 yards and one touchdown. Clark also rushed for 16 yards and another touchdown.

Evan Royster led the rushing attack, putting him on track to become the Penn State all-time rushing yards leader, a title he held until Kaytron Allen ran his name into the record books last season.

Royster had 15 carries for 118 yards and a touchdown in that matchup as the Nittany Lions ran for 163 yards on 27 attempts. Quite the opposite of this year’s face-off with the Wildcats.

Derek Moye led the receiving corps with six receptions for 123 yards and a touchdown. His highlight was a 53-yarder.

Penn State 39, Illinois 0 (2015)

This was quite the spooky night to be an Illinois player. In 2015, Penn State dominated Illinois in quarterback Christian Hackenberg’s final win as a Nittany Lion.

Despite being 7-2 at the time, Penn State would lose its last four games of the season, including the TaxSlayer Bowl against Georgia, to finish 7-6.

The 2015 team featured a ton of future NFL talent, including Saquon Barkley, Chris Godwin, Mike Gesicki, and even Trace McSorley, who attempted three passes and three rushes in this game.

The game’s surprise was a trick play in which Nick Scott, who currently plays safety for the Carolina Panthers, threw a touchdown pass to Hackenberg.

Hackenber finished the game with 266 passing yards and two touchdowns on 29 attempts. Barkley led the way on the ground with 84 yards and a touchdown, and Godwin finished with seven receptions for 76 yards and a touchdown.

Ohio State 38, Penn State 25 (2020)

Six years ago, the Nittany Lions suffered their most recent Halloween loss. It was just the second game of a shortened COVID-19 season in which Penn State finished just 4-5.

Quarterback Sean Clifford threw three touchdown passes to Jahan Dotson, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the Buckeyes, who were on their way to a National Championship loss against Alabama.

Let’s hope Penn State can get back in the win column against Purdue this Saturday.