Michael Quinn

Penn State is famous for its fan experience and turnouts for college football games during the fall. Whether it’s a whiteout game or just another rivalry game, Beaver Stadium has not disappointed, filling nearly all of its 106,572 attendance capacity. In fact, Penn State has ranked within the Top 3 in attendance in all of college football for the last 3 seasons. Enter Covid-19, which has emptied one of the premier college football venues in University Park, Pennsylvania. 

So what does Penn State Football do without its most distinguishing feature? Luckily, they have a blueprint they are able to follow from other sports leagues that have either completed their seasons or are currently playing them. For most teams, cardboard fan cutouts seemed to be the way to go to still offer a fan experience. Penn State has decided to take that route too. Fans will pay for a cutout, submit a picture of themselves, and then will be seated with other cutouts around the stadium, resembling a full to semi-full looking stadium. 

Another activity they are offering is something they like to call “Virtual Valley.” Virtual Valley creates a regular game-day atmosphere for fans straight to their homes or wherever they are watching the game. The Raise the Song campaign will have fans submit videos of them cheering to show during the games. Raise the Song “videos will be used in-stadium on game day to support our student-athletes.” From airing shows, podcasts, showing photos under the #PSUPride, to a virtual tailgate and trivia, Penn State is doing it all to create a real game day, just virtually. 

As the season begins at home next Saturday, Penn State will be missing one of its key characteristics. Everyone around the league knows that “Beaver Stadium has long been considered one of the most difficult venues for a road team in college football.” Teams may think that they may have it a lot more easy coming into Beaver Stadium with no fans, just the cutouts. But with the extent of how Penn State is taking its virtual experience, don’t be surprised if it’s just as loud in there.