Reviewing The 2026 Penn State Beaver Stadium Gameday Experience

We have reached the Sunday after the first Penn State home football game of the year. 

That means it’s time for the greatest tradition in all of micro-niche Penn State sports business-media blogging. 

It means that it’s time to discuss the Beaver Stadium gameday experience. This has become an annual tradition on the Blog – and will also continue last year’s new tradition in the form of our Did You Notice series throughout this season. 

However, as always, after the first game, I want to spend valuable HTML space providing a review of what I experienced on Saturday – and hopefully what you experienced too. It is a part of “The Greatest Show In College Sports” after all – and where dependable value can be found for fans aside from what happens over the course of four quarters within the football game. 

Though, we must once again offer this piece with a bit of caution that I was one of 108,489 inside Beaver Stadium – or rather West Shore Home Field at Beaver Stadium – on Saturday. 

Overall, the experience inside the stadium improved from last year, and the experience on the concourse is certainly showing the construction dust. 

But for the start of the season, it was a strong experience that can get better. 

Pregame Walk 

The gameday experience for me actually began on Friday. Aside from the continued switch to digital tickets and now digital parking passes, Penn State posted that it was now allowing fans to enter through something called “Express Entry” which relies on facial recognition, removing the need to pull out your ticket on your phone.

Using facial recognition software, Wicket – the company Penn State worked with to install this solution – uses your face as your ticket. The company, which offers the solution to NFL teams like the Panthers, Browns and Titans, according to its website, says it “will not share or sell your data related to this program with any third parties.”

I recognize that in the ever-changing world of data privacy and protection, this solution is not for everyone. However, I have used something similar before when attending Nationals games, called MLB Go-Ahead Entry. If you are comfortable with these solutions, it can speed up your entry process through stadiums – similar to those like Clear on top of TSA Precheck at airports. 

This solution, when I discovered it a few years ago from the Nationals, is something I’ve thought that Penn State should add to improve entry times – which can often get congested. And while again not for everyone – and not required for entry – it is a solution available that worked on Saturday. It was a personal choice I made because I’m comfortable with it and I recognize not everyone may be. After taking a selfie on Friday and pairing it with my Ticketmaster account, I was largely set for gameday. 

When entering through Gate F roughly an hour and 15 minutes before the game, I was able to – without wait – walk through in less than five seconds. Meanwhile, curious as to how much time-saving this would yield, my mom entered with her ticket. It was 2 minutes and 36 seconds after I entered that she finally scanned her ticket. While that far out of kickoff, that isn’t a massive time saving, I would imagine if you’d arrive closer to kickoff – or for a bigger game that often creates longer log jams at gates, this solution could save even more time. 

Once inside Gate F, I noticed the most glaring change to that area. The Bud Light Backyard Beer Garden – and the double deck bar – was gone. Instead there was a patio area that seemed to have a controlled entry. Additionally, at Gate F this season is a newly installed screen, essentially acting as a mounted TV showing other games happening around the country. 

This was a heavily touted feature of the gameday experience that is, after one year, gone which was quite a surprise. Additionally, the smaller vendors that were setup in the Gate F area selling food have mostly been changed to a grab-and-go solution. 

Another change immediately greeted me inside of Gate F. Caliente Pizza was no longer the pizza provider for the stadium, as it was switched to a generic 1855 Pizza Co. This trend continued throughout the stadium as several other stands, like the We Are Inn (cheesesteaks) kiosk and Adam & Nancy’s Paninis, are no longer in the stadium. They’ve been swapped out. Others, like Scott’s Roasting, still remain. 

In particular, the Adam & Nancy’s Paninis stand has been converted to “Tap Beer” sales kiosk. It is the only one in the stadium offering just State Light Lime and Linebacker BRU IPA from New Trail Brewing Co. (Others have noted the fact the area was also called “Tap Beer” and not “Draught Beer” or “Beer on Tap.”) 

It seems that this is one area where the stadium may have taken a step back in 2026. Particularly for those who do not eat meat (my wife is holding me hostage to say this part), there are less non-fried options for those fans. (It’s a very reasonable gripe as many people in 2026 have allergies or food restrictions and something of a hot topic in our household.) 

And it appears as expected prices have gone up in 2026. While the updates to the Beaver Stadium Food Finder will be completed later this week, it should be noted that most items saw a 3 to 5 percent increase. However, fountain sodas increased 19 percent year over year – and something I’m looking into after the next game – may be a smaller amount of soda thanks to new aluminum cups.  I grabbed one myself and noticed that the lids – similar to those from Starbucks that do not require a straw – are not the best to use. Beer prices appeared to mostly stay flat however. 

Elsewhere in my pregame walk, I noticed that there were what appeared to be more places to grab food and drinks quickly. However, places like the Lions Den Market were not open yesterday. 

One of the hallmarks was the talks this offseason of an expanded east concourse but I did not notice much change on that side. The west side however was a different story. 

There are no permanent bathrooms on the lower concourse right now because of the construction. The women’s room, I’m told, closest to the western sideline also flooded yesterday. Every other bathroom is just a porta-potty, and it seems that it will remain that way until 2027. 

Other Notes

• Because of the construction, you can very easily see into the away team locker room area. There is less fencing there overall. 

• There’s a new food court-type area on the west sideline. It was the first place I’ve found in the stadium with coolers that have bottles of soda. 

• The concourse WiFi has gotten faster. I got 79 Mbps down and 41 Mbps up. However, it is 2026 and there is still no reliable service or WiFi in the seating section. This is the biggest change needed ahead of 2027. 

Construction Updates

Prior to the season, the biggest talking point was at times the second deck addition to Beaver Stadium along the west sideline. This was my other main priority to check out on Saturday. Prior to kickoff, I visited Steve who had a seat in section 306. The 300 section has about seven rows of seats. 

Steve sat roughly in the third row, however, upon my arrival quickly pointed out that those sitting in row one would have an obstructed view of the game. 

The other drawback is just how high the 300 and 400 level sections are. It was a trek from the top of the lower bowl, up the staircases just to reach the 300 level. It appears that the stairwells lead to a concourse at the top of the previous temporary sections this year, as opposed to last year when they are at the bottom. Once you reach the second-level concourse, there are limited food options and only porta-potties. I would recommend that you grab the food you want before making the trek up – and potentially a stop at a non-flooded bathroom. 

Once I reached the top of the steps, the top of the 300 section and the concourse between the 300 and 400 level, is essentially the same height as the north end zone edition. 

And of course, yes, I made my way to the now infamous section 409 – which, yes, was the only one with a blue sign in the 400 levels both at entry and at the top. While I was there for journalistic purposes, there were several fans taking pictures with Joe Paterno shirts. If you are interested in sitting below the section 409 sign, it’s located at row 27, seat 18. 

The views from the second deck of the Nittany Valley are incredible and on a warm day, all the more enjoyable. However, I imagine those seats will be cold come late October and November. There is little pizzazz to the sections but they’re reminiscent of the second deck of Raymond James Stadium in Tampa. Once escalators – which are under construction – are installed, it may be a better experience getting to those seats. 

Once I returned to my usual seats, I was also slightly blinded by the new lights that are strung along the east suites. They were not as much of a problem once I was in my seat but for those sitting in the lower rows, they could become distracting. 

Other Updates

• Because of the new light system, the light stanchions at the eastern corners of the stadium are gone. Here’s what they looked like last year.

• Because of the renovation, the stadium did feel louder though it’s hard to tell this early in the season. 

• The “1-0” banner above the Penn State tunnel is gone. It’s now replaced with a banner that says “Success With Honor.” 

Gameday Presentation 

The most obvious change in the experience was just how loud the new sound system is. It is louder for sure. In some ways though, I’m not sure it’s better. It was clear that Penn State was dialing it in throughout the pregame and even the start of the game. Eventually, though, there was better clarity for Rodney Martin and Joe Putnam’s announcements than before. 

The other obvious change was the fact that Penn State – in its new era under Matt Campbell – was going to need new filmography to showcase before the game. While the pregame pump video – played before the team takes the field – and the “Best Fans” video – played during the coin toss – were still in their usual spots, these received strong improvements year over year. 

It’s unclear if the pregame pump-up video will remain consistent or change throughout the season. Regardless, having Jack Ham as the narrator and storyteller for an era of change was an incredibly well-made decision. Few people represent both the past and present of Penn State the way Ham does and Penn State’s decision to use him here was spectacular. 

The most obvious change to the video’s shots was a withdrawal of various eras of Penn State football. Though big plays were shown from every era, the only coach shown in the videos was Paterno. It was an about-face from the Franklin era, which showed him, Rip Engle and even Bill O’Brien at points.  

In the “Best Fans” video, there was an excellent sequence of opposing quarterbacks struggling to hear the Coach-To-Player transmissions that I wanted to be sure I noted because of how good it was. The ability to find those clips and sequence them together was another strong step for Penn State’s 

Penn State seemed to have lightly cleaned up the scoreboard graphic package this year that displays score, time and down and distance but did not make earth-shattering changes. There were also subtle changes to the various non-advertising brand moments throughout. Overall, it was a much cleaner start than last year which had various things corrected later in the season. 

Penn State also added a few things to the scoreboard. First, the north end zone at times was flashing player stats. Additionally, a little yellow box would appear any time there was a flag on the play. And a clever activation was that all replays were sponsored by Zenni Optical. 

Throughout the game, Penn State leaned heavily on singalongs. While I have no issue with that, it is important that Penn State remains consistent. If it wants singalongs to be a part of the experience, then it can not waver from that. In particular, playing Dolly Parton’s “9-to-5” was a great touch. 

But the highlight of singalongs came later. First, Taylor Swift’s “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” began to play, which felt like an odd song choice for what is usually in rotation inside of the stadium. During this, my wife hypothesized it was a reference to James Franklin. Then, it was immediately followed up by Metallica’s “Enter Sandman.”

The only thing I heard next was the sound of me gasping. It was a brazen shot at Franklin – who is now of course at Virginia Tech where that song is used as the Hokies’ main tradition – and honestly, bravo. We went through a lot with him and how controlling he was of everything, including the gameday experience. I commend those pushing the buttons both figuratively and literally. 

Final Thoughts Before Some Other Notes

Overall as mentioned, the experience inside the stadium felt improved and clean. There were fewer hiccups – at least noticeable ones – for game one in years past but that consistency must remain over the next six games. However, I would argue that cleanliness of the show is also important for those who will only have attended the Marshall game this season. Not everyone gets to every game so leaving with a good experience matters, and overall Penn State did that inside. On the concourse, I am less willing to give high marks but am willing to give grace because of the construction. It – though once prices increase – must improve in 2027. 

Other notes

• Yes, Matt Campbell wasn’t introduced. He explained that after the game. 

• He did not also lead the team onto the field, per se, the way James Franklin did. There was no linking of arms with players. There was just walking to the tunnel and running onto the field. There was also no announcement of “Under the direction of Matt Campbell,” the way Franklin was announced before. 

•  I wrote an entire piece about the 4th Quarter Flag going away. This piece is already long enough. 

• The “MAKE SOME NOISE” button was hit exactly once – at kickoff – on Saturday and that’s it. It appears many of those who have commented and grumbled about that particular sound bite have gotten their wish. 

• The Big Uglies were back. Always great to see them. And what I noticed about them this year was the fact they also made the jump from Nike to adidas as they now have adidas jerseys. 

•  It appears Sheetz is changing its messaging every game. Saturday was “Tonight’s MTO Order: Bison Burgerz, Well Done” in jest of the Thundering Herd. 

• The irony of Venmo being a sponsor of Penn State in light of recent news around the usage of Venmo is not lost on me. 

• The Stripe Out looks better during the day. 

What did you notice? Shoot us a note at darian@stuffsomerssays.com and we might discuss them on this week’s podcast. 

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