Don't Leave Me Hanging: What to Expect at Your First Football Game

If you are like me, coming into my first year at Penn State, I knew at most three things about football:

1.     If the people around you are rooting for the same team, and they are cheering or booing, you should probably join in because something just happened.

2.     A touchdown earns your team six points and an extra kick is worth one point. (I knew this because my friends in high school had explained it to me).

3.     NFL games are on Sundays and College Football games are on Saturdays.

Obviously, I was not very interested in sports coming into college, but Penn State sports, especially football, are more than just sitting down and watching a game.

A Penn State football game is like a family reunion, and as a student you are now a part of that family. Alumni, families, and friends come from all over the country to small town State College every home game to cheer on the Nittany Lions. It is an incredible experience.

In this post, I want to give you a few tips and tricks I have learned over the past two years to help you navigate your first game and the rest of the season.

Bleeding Blue and White: What to Wear and How to Prepare

By the time you graduate, you will have more Penn State shirts than you know what to do with. If you want to start adding to your collection early, McLanahans on College Ave (the one across from South Halls) has all things PSU for a fair price. They have a variety of shirts, hoodies, face stickers, etc. Even if you don't plan on buying anything, it's a fun place to window shop. And they take LionCash!

If you do not want to buy a shirt, your class shirt that you received when you got accepted or a white out shirt (if you bought one with your season tickets) will be great.

When getting ready for a game, the main thing I try to keep in mind is dressing comfortably. For the first few games of the season, it will be very hot, especially in the stadium on the metal bleachers. Dressing in layers may be to your benefit. Check the weather before you leave your dorm.

Things to bring:

ü  Your Student ID- your ticket is linked to your ID and this is how you will get into the game. Also, all food and beverage purchased in the stadium can be paid for with the meal points or LionCash on your ID.

ü  Room Key

ü  Cell phone- you may not have great service at Beaver Stadium just an fyi that it can be iffy at times

ü  Sunscreen- bleacher burn is a real thing

ü  Shades

ü  Penn State gear of some kind- show your pride!!

Heads up for colder games: rubber soled shoes like Converse and Sperry’s will get cold very quickly when you are standing on metal bleachers. I recommend layering (a lot) with warm socks or wearing winter boots #noshame.

Things you cannot bring:

ü  BAGS!!!!!- I know, mildly frustrating, but it is for safety purposes. You are, however, allowed to bring a gallon sized clear bag. General rule of thumb: if it can fit in your back pocket, it will probably be allowed in the stadium. Things like ID holders and Vera Bradley change purses are typically fine. Just don't try to bring in a hipster purse or a backpack.

ü  Food and Drinks

ü  Umbrellas- invest in some nice rain boots and a good rain jacket.

Meet the Fam: Tailgating

Tailgating is a great way to hangout, meet people, and make memories before a game. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND GOING!!! I became friends with my two best friends because we went to a tailgate together for our first game. (Shout out to Molly and Katie Team E Mentors.)

How do I find a tailgate??? More likely than not, one of your friends will know someone who is having a tailgate. Clubs also have tailgates you can go to. SWE, Society of Women Engineers, will usually have one that you can go to and network with Alumni at.

Just a heads up: there will be a lot of people around Beaver Stadium for a Penn State home game. Don't let that intimidate you though. Ninety-nine percent of those people are part of your PSU family, and they are here to cheer on your team with you. It is super cool!

Pro Tips:

1.     Always try to go with someone to a tailgate/game. It is always better to have a buddy when trying to navigate through the rows of tents and flags.

2.     If you are going to a tailgate with a group of friends, try to leave campus with that group to go to the tailgate. Don’t try to join them later because it can be very hard to find people in the sea of tents. Dropping a pin can be beneficial, but if you don't have service or cannot send your location to a friend, it is kind of useless. More than once, I have not been able to find a tailgate because I decided to come late.

3.     If you are meeting people for the game who did not tailgate with you, meet them at a specific time and central location at the stadium to go into the game. You don't have to go to the same tailgate as a friend in order to go to the game together. A great place to meet people is in front of Gate A, the gate that is only for students at the south end of the stadium. There are some big rocks outside Gate A, and most students know where the rocks are.

4.     Your entire party needs to go into the stadium together in order to sit together. After you go through security you will have to swipe your student ID, and an individual ticket for a numbered seat in a specific section will print. If your entire group wants to sit next to each other, you will have to go through the gate together.

ARE YOU READY FOR PENN STATE FOOTBALL???!!!!: The Game

Penn State Traditions:

1.     Drum Major Flip- Let me be the first to tell you that the Blue Band is awesome. Before each game and during the half-time show, the drum major will run out in front of the band and do a front flip into a split! It is super cool, and the crowd goes crazy. Keep an eye for it.

2.     “We Are” chant- You will quickly become an expert at this infamous chant. It is a Penn State symbol, and while I was in Germany over the summer, another Penn Stater and I did the chant in recognition of each other. If you have never heard it before, it is very simple and easy to learn. If someone says, “We are”, you reply with, “Penn State”. The cheerleaders lead the student section in a few screaming choruses of it before the football players come out of the tunnel at the beginning of the game.

3.     Lion push-ups- Each time Penn State scores, the Nittany Lion will do ONE-ARMED push-ups to match the new score.

4.     Stand throws- When PSU scores, guys in the student section will toss the girls around them into the air the same number of times as the total number of points we have on the score board. THIS IS SO MUCH FUN! You have to try it at least once.

5.     Between Quarter shows- There will always be something happening on the field in front of the student section between quarters. Some of my favorites are the Lion show and the Lionettes’ dance routine. They change each game, and they are so much fun to watch.

6.     The Lion goes crowd surfing- Every game, the Nittany Lion will allow himself to be lifted up by an area in the student section and he crowd surfs all the way to the top of the stadium.

7.     S-Zone- Every game, the Lion Ambassadors will turn a part of stands in the SE section into the S-Zone. It’s fun! Plus, you get a free t-shirt out of it! Anyone can get in this section as long as you have a student ticket. If you want to get into the S-Zone, I recommend getting into the stadium at least an hour before the game starts.

8.     Alma Mater- At the end of every game, every Penn Stater, young and old, sings the Alma Mater. The football team gathers in front of the student section, and everyone puts their arms around each other and sways with the Blue Band. This is my favorite part of the game because you can feel the camaraderie and the family that is Penn State as an arena of people cheer together. If we won the game, each member of the football team rings the victory bell after the Alma Mater has ended before heading to the lockers.

                                        Songs and chants you will hear:

Don't stress about trying to memorize these because you will hear them often and learn them before you know it.

The Alma Mater

For the glory of old State,

For her founders strong and great,

For the future that we wait,

Raise the song, raise the song.

Sing our love and loyalty,

Sing our hopes that bright and free

Rest, O mother dear, with thee,

All with thee, all with thee.

When we stood at childhood's gate,

Shapeless in the hands of fate,

Thou didst mold us, dear old State,

Dear old State, dear old State.

May no act of ours bring shame,

To one heart that loves thy name.

May our lives but swell thy fame,

Dear old State, dear old State.

Hail to the Lion

Every college has a legend,

Passed on from year to year,

To which they pledge allegiance

And always cherish dear.

But of all the honored idols,

There’s but one that stands the test,

It’s the stately Nittany Lion,

The symbol of our best.

- Chorus -

Hail to the Lion, Loyal and True.

Hail Alma Mater, with your White and Blue.

Penn State forever, Molder of men,

Fight for her honor, Fight, and Victory again.

Indiana has its Hoosiers,

Purdue its gold and black.

The Wildcats of Northwestern

And Spartans on attack.

Ohio State has its Buckeyes,

Up north the Wolverines.

But the mighty Nittany Lions,

The best they’ve ever seen.

- Chorus -

There’s Pittsburgh with its Panther,

and Penn her Red and Blue,

Dartmouth with its Indian,

and Yale her Bulldog, too.

There’s Princeton with its Tiger,

and Cornell with its Bear.

But speaking now of victory,

We’ll get the Lion’s share.

- Chorus –

Fight on State

Fight on State (GO!)
Fight on State (GO!)
Strike your gait and win, (LET’S GO STATE!)
Victory we predict for thee
We’re ever true to you, dear old White and Blue.
Onward State, (GO!)
Onward State, (GO!)
Roar, Lions, roar: (LET’S GO STATE!)
We’ll hit that line, roll up the score,
Fight on to victory ever more,
Fight on, on, on, on, on, Fight on, on, Penn State! (S-T-A-T-E GO! STATE!)

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I hope this post answers some of your questions you may have had about Penn State football games. Even if you are not the biggest football fan, a PSU game has something for everyone (even if that means just taking a break from studying).

If you have any other questions about football or just Penn State in general, feel free to reach out to me! Looking forward to seeing you at WEPO!!

For the Glory,

Amanda Hildenbrand

Mechanical Engineer

WE ARE!!!

By: Amanda Hildenbrand (Mentor Team D)