July 15, 2010

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.; - Penn State football fans will be greeted with an improved Gate A at Beaver Stadium when the season kicks off on Sept. 4 against Youngstown State.

The nation’s second-largest facility, with capacity of 107,282, is celebrating its 50th Anniversary this year, having opened in 1960.

Gate A is undergoing a number of permanent changes that will provide fans with more entry gates, safer access into the stadium, kiosk structures and aesthetic beautification of the area. All of the improvements to the gate currently used by students entering Beaver Stadium are on schedule for completion prior to the first game this fall.

More than 21,000 Penn State students annually purchase season football tickets, the largest number of full season student tickets of any school in the nation.

The latest upgrade to Gate A is part of a three-year project to improve crowd flow and safety on gameday. Following the 2007 season, Penn State Intercollegiate Athletics instituted a new strategy for entrance into the stadium at Gate A. Serpentine entry lines were among the first changes in 2008. Last year, student tickets were placed on Penn State ID cards and kiosks were added at Gate A to swipe student IDs prior to entering the serpentine line for entry into the stadium.

Associate Athletic Director for Facilities and Operations Mark Bodenschatz addressed the issues with funneling into the stadium at Gate A with improvements following the 2007 season.

“There was a concern with the funneling effect during games that we wanted to address,” Bodenschatz said. “And we did. Two years ago, we went into the serpentine line system. The logic behind it was to create a much safer flow system. What we created were two places to manage the flow. One between the end of the serpentine and the gate, and the other located between the bag and article check and the beginning of the serpentine. We were able to manage crowd flow much more efficiently.”

The 2009 season brought about another change, as student tickets were placed on their id+ card, further enhancing the flow and safety at Gate A.

The end result of the changes during the past two seasons was significantly improved crowd flow into Beaver Stadium on gamedays. The strategies implemented provided a more efficient method for students to enter the stadium.

The past two years, Bodenschatz said the on-going development process has significantly improved the entry into the stadium and has made for a safer environment for Penn State students. Once a solution to the crowd management concerns was found, Bodenschatz said they wanted to make the Gate A changes permanent.

“This year, we will have more entranceways into the stairwell that will help the flow,” Bodenschatz said. “We are going to bring back grass and trees. General Beaver’s Stone will be where it has always been. In addition to the crowd flow improvements, the changes will bring back some more aesthetic aspects to the landscape.”

Bodenschatz also said that the space available for Paternoville at Gate A will be slightly larger than in the past.

Coach Joe Paterno’s squad returns 36 letterwinners and 13 starters for the 2010 season. The Penn State-Youngstown State season opener will kick at 12:00 p.m. and air on the Big Ten Network, Penn State Sports Network and www.GoPSUsports.com. The Nittany Lions were 11-2 last season, defeating No. 13 LSU in the Capital One Bowl.

July 20, 2010

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.; – The Big Ten Network will air five consecutive days of the Nittany Lions’ most memorable victories and events from the past year and campus programming during Penn State Week, July 26-30.The Nittany Lion basketball, Lady Lion basketball, football, men’s gymnastics, women’s soccer, men’s and women’s track and field/cross country and women’s volleyball teams will be among the squads featured during Penn State Week. The network also will air Penn State institutional programming, including President Graham Spanier’s program, “Expert Opinion,” episodes of “We Are: The Millenials” and the highly-acclaimed documentary, “Making The Blue Band.”The Big Ten Network televised more than 500 athletic events in 2009-10, including more than 100 events featuring Penn State. The network is available to approximately 75 million homes through agreements with more than 300 cable, satellite and telco providers in all 50 states and Canada. The network is available on cable in 46 states and 19 of the top 20 U.S. markets.The Big Ten Network, though, is not carried by Adams, Blue Ridge and MetroCast cable in Pennsylvania. The network also is not available to Armstrong Cable customers in western Pennsylvania and suburban Youngstown, Ohio. A combined total of more than 35,000 Penn State alumni live in communities served by the four cable providers, in addition to thousands more fans and current Penn State students.The Nittany Lions’ football season opener with Youngstown State (Sept. 4) will air exclusively on the network and will be the first of the more than 100 Penn State events that will air on the Big Ten Network in 2010-11. Additional football games will air exclusively on the network this fall, in addition to the women’s volleyball, soccer and field hockey events announced earlier this month.In addition to numerous games, Penn State conference championships in men’s gymnastics, women’s soccer and women’s cross country/track and field will be featured during Penn State Week. Among the highlights of Penn State Week on Big Ten Network:

Monday, July 26 (all times ET)

2:00 p.m. – 2009 Big Ten Cross Country Championships
5:00 p.m – Making The Blue Band documentary
8:00 p.m. – 2006 FedEx Orange Bowl – Penn State vs. Florida State
10:00 p.m. – 2009 Penn State vs. Michigan women’s volleyball

Tuesday, July 27
6:00 p.m. – 2001 Big Ten Basketball Tournament: Penn State vs. Michigan State
8:00 p.m. – 1994 Football: Penn State at Illinois
10:00 p.m. – 2010 Lady Lion Basketball vs. MichiganWednesday, July 28
2:00 p.m. – 2010 Big Ten Outdoor Track and Field Championships
6:00 p.m. – 2008 Nittany Lion Basketball vs. Indiana
10:00 p.m. – 2008 Big Ten Men’s Gymnastics ChampionshipsThursday, July 29
2:00 p.m. – 2008 Big Ten Women’s Soccer Tournament, Championship game: Penn State vs. Minnesota
6:00 p.m. – 2001 NCAA Basketball Tournament: Penn State vs. North Carolina
8:00 p.m. – 2001 Football: Ohio State at Penn State
10:00 p.m. – 2010 Big Ten Women’s Indoor Track and Field ChampionshipsFriday, July 30
6:00 p.m. – 1993 Football: Penn State at Michigan State
8:00 p.m. – 1989 Holiday Bowl: Penn State vs. BYU

Megan Hodge

Bridget Franek

For the complete Penn State Week schedule, click here .The Big Ten Network aired more than 100 Penn State athletic events during the 2009-10 academic year. Twenty-four Penn State teams appeared on the network, including football (4 games, plus Blue-White Game), Nittany Lion basketball (16), Lady Lion basketball (9), the three-time defending NCAA women’s volleyball champions (7), wrestling and 19 more squads.Penn State also is the leader in the production of institutional, non-sports programming among all Big Ten institutions, with nearly 190 hours of programming airing on the network this past year. President Graham Spanier’s panel program, “Expert Opinion,” has been well-received by the network and viewers during its initial year on the air.About the Big Ten Network: The Big Ten Network is the first internationally distributed network dedicated to covering one of the premier collegiate conferences in the country. With approximately 350 live events, and nearly all of them in HD, the network is the ultimate destination for Big Ten fans and alumni across the country, allowing them to see their favorite teams, regardless of where they live. The network operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, showcasing a wide array of classic-to-current sports and televising more Olympic sporting events and women’s sports than has ever been aired on any other network. Original programming highlights activities and accomplishments of some of the nation’s finest universities. Each year, the network offers between 35 and 40 football games, 105 regular season men’s basketball games; 55 women’s basketball games; dozens of Big Ten Championship events; studio shows; coaches’ shows; and classic games.Available to all cable and satellite providers nationwide and in Canada, the network has agreements with more than 300 affiliates, including Verizon FiOS, AT&T U-Verse, DirecTV, DISH Network, Atlantic Broadband, Bright House, CATV Service, Inc., Cablevision, Charter, Comcast, Cox (Omaha, Cleveland, Arizona, Arkansas, Kansas), Insight, Kuhn Communications, Mediacom, Midcontinent, Nittany Media, RCN, Rogers Cable (Canada), Service Electric, Shaw Cable and Shaw Direct (Canada), Time Warner Cable, Western Broadband, Windstream and WOW.

July 12, 2010

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.; - Another outstanding athletic campaign, highlighted by two NCAA Championships and five Big Ten titles, has lifted Penn State to another Top 15 finish in the Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup.

The Nittany Lions were ranked No. 11 in the 2009-10 standings, edged by Duke by 11 points for a spot in the Top 10. Penn State tallied 971.30 points.

Penn State earned its 12th Top 15 finish in the 17-year history of the Directors’ Cup, placing in the Top 25 every year, with eight Top 10 finishes. The Nittany Lions are in elite company as one of only 10 schools nationwide to be ranked in every final Directors’ Cup Top 25, joining: Arizona State, Florida, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio State, Southern California, Stanford, Texas and UCLA.

Penn State also is ranked No. 10 in the Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup cumulative standings since its creation in 1993-94. The Nittany Lions are joined by eight of the above nine schools, with Georgia replacing Arizona State in the cumulative Top 10 over the past 17 years.
Max Lipsitz

Stanford won its 16th consecutive Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup, earning 1,508.50 points. Stanford was followed by Florida (1,310.25), Virginia (1,253.25), UCLA (1,124), Florida State (1,087.50), Texas A&M (1,070.75), North Carolina (1,029.30), Ohio State (1,015.50), California (1,013.50), Duke (982.75) and Penn State.

Penn State and Ohio State again were the highest finishers in the Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup among institutions located in the Midwest, Mid-Atlantic and Northeast.

Penn State has won 19 NCAA Championships since 1993-94, its first full year in the Big Ten Conference, more than double every other Big Ten institution Iowa and Minnesota are tied for second with nine. The Nittany Lion women’s volleyball team captured an unprecedented third consecutive NCAA Championship last December, the program’s fourth in 10 years. The Penn State fencing team won its third national title in four years in March, raising its total to 12 NCAA crowns since 1990.

The Nittany Lions have won 64 Big Ten Championships since 1993-94 (65 all-time) and their 24 Big Ten titles since 2005-06 are the conference’s second-highest total.

The Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup Standings are unveiled following the fall, winter and spring seasons. The Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup was developed as a joint effort between the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) and USA Today. Points are awarded based on each institution’s finish in up to 20 sports — 10 women’s and 10 men’s.

For the complete Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup standings, go to www.nacda.com