1960s .833
1970s .813
1980s .761
1990s .788
2000s .477

The 5-7 record in 2000, and the 5-6 record in 2001, and the 9-4 record in 2002 and the 2-6 record so far in 2003 equal 21-23 or a .477 winning percentage this decade for a man in his eighth decade, Joe Paterno, two months from his 77th birthday.

How much more graphic could the Penn State slide be?

Try these graphic details:

• Penn State lost its fourth consecutive Big Ten game this season and for the fourth consecutive time to Iowa.

• Since its loss to Minnesota that ended a 9-0 start in 1999, Penn State is 22-26.

• Penn State was 3 yards from trailing early for all seventh games this year until defensive back Yaacov Yisreal stepped up to cut off a screen pass and return it 83 yards for a touchdown.

• Special teams cost Penn State again, this time at least 10 points, when a punt was blocked and returned for a touchdown, and when a field goal went wide wrong.

• The offense netted only 176 yards, ran 22 fewer plays, had only 9 first downs, had only 38 rushing yards.

• Penn State was a pathetic 2 for 15 on third-down conversions.

• Penn State got its first first down halfway through the second quarter and netted only 42 yards in the half.

• Zack Mills returned at quarterback and Michael Robinson, the team's best offensive weapon when he plays, was seldom used again.

• The biggest pass plays were to the walk-on tight end (31 yards) and the second-longest was to the freshman running back (24). The wide receivers netted only 32 yards.

• The Nittany Lions left Tony Johnson, their leading receiver and the son of an assistant coach and former Paterno player, home because he was suspended for the game after being charged with drunken driving last week.

• Coming into the game, Penn State's secondary allowed only 121 passing yard a game, best in the Big Ten. But Iowa's Nathan Chandler was 13-of-26 for 174 yards.

• The defense was on the field 6 minutes 30 seconds longer than the offense.

• Penn State again showed it does not have the metabolism for noon Eastern games. This one began at 11:11 Iowa time.

• Penn State had two weeks to prepare for the game.

What a difference one week made for Iowa, whose coach, Ken Ferentz, a Western Pennsylvania native, could be a Penn State employment candidate soon should the embarrasing slide worsen.

Last week, Iowa lost at Ohio State, 19-10, by allowing touchdowns on a blocked punt and a punt return. This week, Iowa returned a punt block for a touchdown, breaking open a 12-7 halftime lead to 19-7, and a long fumble to set up another.

"Last week turnovers would have helped us, special teams would have helped us,'' said linebacker Abdul Hodge, who returned a fumble 47 yards to set up Iowa's first touchdown for a 7-7 tie. "We wanted to correct it. We always feel like it's the defense and special teams that have to make some plays.''

For two weeks, Penn State worked on its special-teams problems, without improvement.

"We're competitive, but we're not making plays,'' Paterno said. "It's got to come back to me. I've got to figure out the things we need to get better. I don't think you can win against good teams if you waste opportunities. Our defense has been pretty good all year. They hung in there and kept us in the game in the first half.'

Fred Russell, the Big Ten's second-leading rusher, who ran for 148 yards on 36 carries, said with appreciation: "It's always a good win to beat a coach like Joe Paterno."

Later Bobby Bowden, the Florida State coach, also beat Paterno, 339-338, in the race for the most victories by a Division I-A coach, leading to another graphic ESPN appraisal that it did not look like Paterno would ever pass Bowden again.

Bowden's 339th came in 7-1 Florida State's 48-24 victory over Wake Forest, when coincidentally Chris Rix passed for 399 yards.

"It's just something that happened,'' said Bowden, who has been reluctant to talk about surpassing Paterno. ``I'm kind of uncomfortable about it because it ain't over. I expect Joe to come back and he will and I'll do the best I can do.''

"When Joe broke Bear's record, Bear couldn't do a darn thing about it, he was underneath,'' Bowden said of the Alabama legend Bear Bryant. "We broke Joe's, but big Joe's still out there huntin' and peckin'.''

Bowden had 31 victories at Samford College, where he began his coaching career in 1959 and 42 at West Virginia. He is 266-65-4 since coming to Florida State in 1976. Bowden, is 339-97-4 (.778) in 38 seasons with two national titles. Paterno is 338-105-03 (.763) in 38 seasons with one national title and four other unbeaten teams that arguably could have been national champions.

But there are two other coaches who have done better. Eddie Robinson, the retired Grambling coach, has the best all-division record with 408 victories. John Gagliardi of St. John's (Minn.), won his No. 407 this weekend.

If Paterno's slide to his third losing season in the last four is embarrassing to Penn State and its fans, what about the other Week 9 embarrassments that were worse?

How does Virginia Tech lose, 28-7, at West Virginia?

How does Wisconsin, which two weeks ago dethroned national champion Ohio State and ended a 19-game winning streak, lose at Northwestern, 16-7?

How does Northern Illinois, ranked for the first time in the top 15, fall at Bowling Green, 34-18, with the Lee Corso and ESPN's Game Day cheerling on the sideline?

How does Auburn go eight quarters with 3 points, then win its next four and then get manhanded (21-0 in first quarter) by L.S.U., 31-7?

How does No. 10 Purdue collapse at Michigan, 31-3?

How do these scores (Tennessee 51, Alabama 43 in 5 overtimes and T.C.U. 62, Houston 55) happen?

How does Georgia nearly lose to the other Alabama at Birmingham, 16-13?

How does Notre Dame show less vigor than John Paul II, falling by 27-25 to Boston College, which last week got clocked at Syracuse?

How does Syracuse race to a 14-0 lead at Pittsburgh and then collapse, 34-14?

I should have asked the blimp impersonating a Syracuse fan near Times Square who was wearing Orange shoes, shorts, a Syracuse T-shirt and an Orange hat that looked like a souffle?

Embarrassing.