Look, if we’re going to spend the next few hundred (or thousand) words together chatting about the gameday experience, we have to discuss the weather yesterday.
Quite frankly, one of the best Penn State football gameday weather days I’ve ever experienced in my life.
But that’s arbitrarily based on a lot of other things out of Penn State’s control.
What Penn State can control is the gameday experience that you and I share every time we walk into the erector set at the corner of Curtin and Porter. And to clarify, I’m not talking about what James Franklin and the football team has to do with that either.
The gameday presentation and stadium experience is an important part of the overall gameday experience and while there wasn’t a dramatic overhaul to my gameday experience compared to last year, there were some few notable changes from Saturday to recap.
(Before we dive in here, I must offer the same warning that I gave last year. I’m one person out of 106,915 who were in attendance. My experience might have been different from yours. But I’ll leave my email at the bottom and you can tell me what I missed there. We may discuss it on the podcast as well.)
Pregame Walk
Many of the entry improvements on the east side that were in place last year were also in place this year.
We typically enter Gate F and it did feel like there were both more turnstiles (if they’re still called that) to get your tickets scanned and more magnetometers to walk through this year. Although to be crystal clear, I did not stop and count them this year and I didn’t stop and count them last year. That would be weird.
The Beaver Stadium entry process itself has gotten better – at least at Gate F over the last few seasons and let’s hope that continues, especially as Penn State trickles through this non-conference slate before guaranteed-bigger attendance games like Oregon, which comes to town at the end of the month.
One of the biggest updates to the Beaver Stadium gameday experience touted in the highly anticipated “What’s New At Beaver Stadium” press release was the Bud Light Backyard Beer Garden.
In general, Gate F has turned into a bit of a food court and its newest piece de resistance is a “premium double-decker sports bar,” made using the same Spacecubes for the temporary press box.
It is neat looking but truth be told – as someone who doesn’t drink much on gamedays – I didn’t go in. Regardless, that general area – complete with a large screen showing the Texas-Ohio State game on Saturday – has become much more popular of a spot to hangout, speaking to Penn State’s search to find more ways to use Beaver Stadium to drive revenue. It also likely gives some fans a reason to enter earlier than they would previously.
As we progressed inside, I also noticed the new stairwells that seemed to be much more direct to take fans up to the upper levels of the east sideline. Four of them are temporary but two are permanent to “improve vertical circulation” as last week’s press release put it. I didn’t see many takers, though, as those more temporary ones look quite steep.
Additionally, there was some signage but given all of the construction going on inside Beaver Stadium, I can understand how after a few Bud Lights at the Bud Light Backyard Beer Garden, you’d probably think they were a part of that or just want to avoid them overall.
Inside of the other parts of the stadium, I didn’t notice much different or new along the east sideline. Anecdotally it seems there are a few more grab-and-go beer fridges. Admittedly, I did not check to see if they included more non-alcoholic beverages. In previous years, again as someone who doesn’t drink much because even Nevada makes me too anxious, I lamented that non-alcoholic options were missing those grab-and-go kiosks. This is something I will check out next weekend.
Of course, where I noticed the largest difference was underneath the stadium on the west side. As the $700 million renovation chugs along, it’s clear that side of the stadium is a construction zone and the other is not.
My biggest takeaway from that side compared to the east side? It’s a bit narrow and congested like many of the roads you take to get to Happy Valley that are under construction. It was much more difficult to navigate but with the construction, a temporary and eventually (hopefully) solvable problem.
Other Notes From Underneath
• Beaver Stadium’s very fast PSUFan WiFi that was rolled out throughout the concourse remains quite fast.
In fact, I forgot to download an app on my phone I needed for a graphic I make after the game but was able to do so on my phone using the WiFi. A quick speed test showed similar speeds to last year — with a slight up-tick in upload speeds. Last year, I got 63.4 mbps down and 34.8 up. This year, I got 49.6 down and 47.2 up.
However, that speed is lost when entering the seating area and anecdotally noticed that Beaver Stadium cellphone reception issues are still very much a thing. It wasn’t until late in the third quarter before many of my in-game texts sent. Many other stadiums in the Big Ten have fast in-arena WiFi and I remain hopeful this is fixed by 2027.
• Elsewhere, I also noticed a slight uptick in food prices, which was anticipated as every item sold at Beaver Stadium comes with a 5 percent “Legacy Fund” upcharge. That was noted on signage at each food and drink location as well. Just don’t call it a player performance fee.
• For all of the hoopla and moaning (myself included) about the addition of “West Shore Home Field” to the Beaver Stadium name, I didn’t notice it much underneath. Even inside of the stadium, it was only noticeable on the field itself. There are, however, other aspects to that we can debate and save for another day.
• Minor and not stadium but tailgating experience related. Our entire lot was out of the clear trash bags and only had the blue ones. That felt a little odd — given Penn State’s focus there.
Gameday Presentation
For a lot of people, the gameday presentation and the feelings it creates are almost equally important as the game itself.
And for the most part, Penn State kept much of what was included in its experience last year.
The highlight of the entire pregame show was, of course, drum major Ellie Sheehan’s flip, as she became the first female Blue Band drum major this offseason. She nailed the signature flip, eliciting a louder-than-normal cheer. It was one of the more special pregame moments inside Beaver Stadium in quite some time.
As the pregame show progressed from the Blue Band to the usual pregame pump-up videos, I was disappointed to see that Penn State is still relying on the same storyline, more or less, for the pregame video. There were clips sprinkled in from the 2025 season but it feels like each season should be greeted with a refreshed take and spin on that.
What did get a refreshed spin and look was the video board itself. Last year, the font on the video boards was quite hard to read, and credit Penn State for making it readable out of the gate.
However, between the video boards and the ribbon boards, there were many inconsistencies between fonts. The time clock utilized a stylized seven-segment font – akin to what you see on a digital watch or alarm clock. On the video board that font was standard while on the ribbon board it was italicized. That font also differed from the one being used on the down-and-distance and the score itself. Additionally, on the north scoreboard, the in-game stats font that shows things like total rushing yards and time of possession was different from that on the southern scoreboard. And eventually, Penn State was able to fix the kerning on the font between the down and ampersand on the ribbon boards.
I harp on fonts because this is the most vital information to my gameday experience. A cleaner look is appreciated but a uniform look would be also be nice. Penn State could do a better job of being quicker about updating it as well but this problem seems to just be a fact of life.
Speaking of vital information, for much of the pregame and first half, the out-of-town scoreboard was not working, showing blank scores and other (for a lack of a better term) funky things. With the still-terrible cellphone reception, it’d be great to have those scores there working to serve fans keeping an eye on games around the country, too.
Beaver Stadium also continues to serve fans a lot of ads with its new ribbon boards and LED displays.
With three different levels of ribbon boards in the south end zone and many now around the field, it feels like one of them – particularly the “super ribbon boards” at the top of the stadium could be used to flash stats and other information about the game I’m watching in front of me.
Instead, it was largely ads for all of Saturday, and oftentimes, it was a different sponsor for each level of ribbon board.
Penn State uses this to make money and there are no issues there. But two seasons in and it’s still taking some getting used to. Ultimately, not everything has to be about ads all of the time. Penn State did show various sports accolades from the 2023-24 school year on the super ribbon boards but for the most part, most of the people in the stadium know that info. Give them info about what’s happening at the game instead.
One thing I don’t specifically recall from last season is that individual downs and plays being sponsored by companies. Those flashed on the ribbon boards often as well. For example, a fumble recovery is sponsored by AAA. Utz has the “naming rights” to first down while Penn State is on offense. Goodridge Construction Group sponsors third downs on while Penn State is on defense. It’s a fun activation if it is new.
What is also going to take some getting used to is Beaver Stadium’s newest LED board above the Penn State tunnel. For decades, there has been some sort of logo above that tunnel and it has been — like many other available prominent real estate spaces in the stadium — replaced by a video board. While I understand Penn State’s need to make money and I understand there are advertisers to please, a small part of me hoped that the sacredness of that area would be kept. It looked that way with the graphics package that rolled out during pregame as it either flashed the chipmunk logo or the Penn State Unrivaled logo.
But then before the game’s first play, it flipped to an Amica Insurance ad. This is a part of life now as a college football fan – and it’s one that will have to be accustomed to.
Other Notes From The Gameday Presentation
• Penn State has adjusted the bane of my existence, the “Are You Ready For The Fourth Quarter” bit.
Unfortunately for those who do not like the flag, it’s still a part of the show. But instead of the Blue Band playing its remix of “Rock N’ Roll” like the pregame, after the mic man is done with his question, a pump-up video plays.
It’s an improvement but I still find the experience odd and I still really hate that flag.
• I noticed you could hear the mic man much better on Saturday. In addition, I could also hear the referee’s microphone much better on Saturday.
• And while it was Nevada and it was the season opener, it did feel like the new construction helped make Beaver Stadium just a tad louder. The Oregon game will be the ultimate barometer, however.
Halftime Field Trip To The Construction Zone
I did venture up to the construction area and the new temporary seating along the west side. While I didn’t try to sneak my way up to the seats (just yet), I did find it relatively easy to get to.
All-in-all, it reminded me of the temporary seating I experienced in Toronto at Rogers Stadium where I recently saw Oasis. (I mostly put this in here to brag about that.)
The reported gap between the seats does not appear to be that big and it would be difficult to drop something down there.
I will say once up there – and to no one’s fault – I did notice a certain smell given the number of port-a-potties around. Of course, those probably had some baking time in Saturday’s slightly warmer weather and in the sun which mostly hits that side. It was nothing compared to the occasional reminders of Penn State’s roots as an agriculture school you will occasionally get when the wind is right. Still it’s a problem that is very temporary and a much better soltuion than not having any option up there.
I also noticed the beer rail and that seating from my seats below. Those seemed quite neat and would be cool to check out or understand if you need a dedicated ticket for. It appeared they were mostly empty for much of the game.
I was also pleasantly surprised to see the number of food and beverage options up along the deck of the temporary seating. For the most part, you would not have to go back down to the bottom – unless of course you wanted to use an actual bathroom.
Overall the gameday experience still remains strong but there is always room for improvement. So, what did I miss? What did you think? What was good? What wasn’t?
Shoot us an email at darian@stuffsomerssays.com or tweet us your thoughts at @StuffSomersSays and we will discuss some of those on the podcast this week.
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