Beaver Stadium

Beaver Stadium is an outdoor college football stadium in University Park, Pennsylvania, United States, on the campus of The Pennsylvania State University. It is home to the Penn State Nittany Lions of the Big Ten Conference since 1960, though some parts of the stadium date back to 1909. The stadium is named for James A. Beaver, a former governor of Pennsylvania (1887–91) and president of the university's board of trustees.

Beaver Stadium has an official seating capacity of 106,572, making it currently the second-largest stadium in the Western Hemisphere and the fourth-largest in the world.

Beaver Stadium is widely known as one of the toughest venues for opposing teams in collegiate athletics. In 2008, Beaver Stadium was recognized as having the best student section in the country for the second consecutive year.

The stadium is the first to have its interior included in Google Street View.

Predecessors
Until 1893, Penn State teams participated in sporting events on Old Main lawn, a large grassy area in front of the primary classroom building of the time. Beaver Field, a 500-seat structure located behind the current site of the Osmond Building, was the first permanent home for Penn State's football team, and the first game played there was a Penn State victory over Western University of Pennsylvania (now the University of Pittsburgh) on November 6, 1893. In 1909, New Beaver Field opened just northeast of Rec Hall, roughly in the current location of the Nittany Parking deck. It served as Penn State's stadium until 1960, when the entire 30,000 seat stadium was dismantled and moved to the east end of campus, reassembled and expanded to 46,284 seats--the lower half of the current facility--and dubbed Beaver Stadium.

Expansions
The stadium has been expanded six times, reflecting Penn State's rise to national prominence under Joe Paterno--more than doubling in size in the process. Expansions in 1969, 1972 to 57,538, and 1976 increased capacity to 60,203. In 1978, 16,000 seats were added when the stadium was cut into sections and raised on hydraulic lifts, allowing the insertion of seating along the inner ring of the stadium where the track had previously been located, raising capacity to 76,639. In 1980, maximum capacity increased to 83,770. In 1985, walkways were added around the tops of the end zones and entry ramps at the stadium's corners resulted in lowering the capacity to 83,370. An expansion was completed for the 1991 football season, placing an upper deck addition over the north end zone and raising capacity to 93,967.

A major and somewhat controversial construction project took place in 2001, raising the stadium's total capacity to 107,282. An upper deck was added to the south end of the stadium, blocking the view of neighboring Nittany Mountain (which had sentimental value for some fans), but making Beaver Stadium the second largest stadium in nation, behind Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, MI.

In 2006, the stadium underwent major structural and aesthetic upgrades. Old steel beams supporting the upper seats in the east, north and west were replaced and strengthened, and new railing was installed, stronger than the old railing which collapsed following the 2005 Ohio State game.

In 2007, over 22,000 student tickets sold out in 59 minutes. In 2008, when tickets were sold by grade, tickets allotted for junior students sold out in 90 seconds, and those for sophomores and freshmen sold out in under three minutes each.

In 2011, the stadium capacity was reduced from 107,282 seats to 106,572 to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The appearance of the stadium has been enhanced with the addition of large blue letters spelling out "The Pennsylvania State University" on the west-facing suites, and a list of Penn State's undefeated, national championship, and Big Ten championship years underneath. 2012 is the exception, which was added to this list during the November 24, 2012 game against Wisconsin to honor the team that played after sanctions were passed down during the aftermath of the Jerry Sandusky scandal. On the opposite side of the stadium, letters spelling, "Penn State Nittany Lions" have been added to the press box, with "Beaver Stadium" running below. Nine markers depicting the various traditions of Beaver Stadium, including the Blue Band, the student section, and the blue buses which bring the team to the stadium, have been placed around the stadium as well. In late October, the walls surrounding the field were refaced with Pennsylvania limestone. An iron gate has replaced the old chain-link face at the players' entrance into the stadium. On the new gate the words "PENN STATE" appear in blue.

Currently, the Penn State OPP and Athletic Department are working to upgrade the North and South Video Boards. The Renovation would include expanding the size of the video board by eliminating the current game clock and lamp matrix display. The two current options proposed include a screen size of either 109 feet by 29 feet or a larger option of 158 feet by 29 feet. Another option being considered by the university includes a completely new scoreboard designed by Anthony James Partners (AJP). This design includes an even larger screen than either of the two renovation options. Additionally, the design would include a Light-Up Penn State Logo Sign atop both boards. On the reverse side of the South Board, sponsor banners could also be displayed. The project is scheduled to be completed prior to the first home game of the 2012 season.

Records
Beaver Stadium's record crowd of 110,753 witnessed Penn State's 40–7 victory over Nebraska on September 14, 2002.

In 2002, Penn State also set an NCAA record for largest season attendance, with 1,257,707 watching Penn State games over the course of the season.

It is boasted by the Penn State community that during home games at State College the stadium is the 4th largest city by "population" in the state. It follows Philadelphia (1,517,550), Pittsburgh (334,563), and Allentown (118,032) and precedes Erie (101,786).

Smallest crowds*

 * since 2001 expansion

Tailgating
Tailgating is very popular outside Beaver Stadium. Alcohol is permitted in all areas around Beaver Stadium on home football games, except inside Beaver Stadium and the Bryce Jordan Center (Alcohol is permitted inside Medlar Field at Lubrano Park, but only alcohol purchased inside the ballpark). Both the Bryce Jordan Center and Medlar Field at Lubrano Park are open for special events before kickoff during home football games.

Student Section "S-Zone"
The student section "S-zone" is another tradition at Beaver Stadium. A small section behind the end zone are all given white and blue shirts by the Pennsylvania State University Lion Ambassadors to create an "S" in the senior student section. The "S-zone" was moved from the 20 yard line to its current location at the beginning of the 2011 football season, as the student section was shifted over to between the 10 yard lines. For the 2008 and 2011 Homecoming Games, the "S-zone" was black and pink, in honor of the original Penn State colors. On April 21, 2007, for the Annual Blue and White Game (Senior Scrimmage), the "S" zone was converted to a "VT" zone, in honor of the victims of the massacre that took place on April 16, 2007, at Virginia Tech.

Whiteout Games
After failed experiments with "Code Blue" during the down year of 2004, the "White Out" made national headlines during the famed 2005 game versus Ohio State. In this game, despite 40 degree temperatures and a misty rain, nearly every student, along with many other fans, wore a white shirt to the game, creating a sea of white. This was deemed a success, as the student section was declared "the best in the country" by ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit, and the Nittany Lions won the game in an intense defensive battle, by a score of 17-10. The student section was widely credited with aiding the defense, which kept the Buckeyes' future Heisman Trophy winning quarterback, Troy Smith, in check by intercepting a pass and recovering a decisive fumble in the final minutes. Smith was forced to call several timeouts during the game due to inability to communicate with his offense on the field. Former Ohio State Center Nick Mangold has openly admitted that Beaver Stadium was the toughest stadium he had ever played in. In 2007, for the Notre Dame game, a full-stadium "White House" was declared, in which every fan in attendance was asked to wear white. This was also deemed a success, as nearly every Penn State fan in attendance wore white, and the Lions won, 31-10. In 2008, the White House was met with similar success, a 38-24 win over Illinois.

Zombie Nation
Zombie Nation is a tradition carried out by the Nittany Lions usually after a big play. Zombie Nation is when the entire Penn State crowd jumps around, waves their rally towels or shakers wildly, and shouts "WE ARE PENN STATE" during the playing of "Kernkraft 400" by Zombie Nation.

Tunnel Entrance
The tunnel entrance is a Nittany Lions tradition in which the head coach leads the team from the locker room under the South side of the stadium to the tunnel to a closed metal gate reading "PENN STATE" in bold Arial font. When the team arrives at the gate, the Nittany Lion would open the gate and motion for the team to walk through it, as if welcoming the team to the field. The team would then linger until four minutes were left on the pregame clock, and then the head coach leads the team through the tunnel created by the Blue Band.

Fast & Slow Wave
The Penn State Student section initiates slow speed waves during sporting events. After the wave passes around the stadium, the student section speeds the wave up to over twice the normal speed on the second pass. On the third pass, the wave is then slowed down to about a fourth the speed of the normal wave.

The Flip
After the Penn State Blue Band has entered the field, and played the first 8 bars of "Hail to the Lion," the Blue Band's Drum Major does a high-stepping, stiff-legged sprint in between rows of band members from the goal line to the 50 yard line, where he does a front flip. Legend states that if the drum major lands the flip, the team will win that afternoon. He then performs another flip while running towards the end zone. After he stands back up, he and the Nittany Lion, who is holding his baton, take 5 high-steps toward each other, meeting 5 yards deep in the end zone. The Lion and Drum Major both place both hands on the baton in alternating order (in the same manner children choosing teams with a baseball bat would) and then throw the baton into the ground. They then salute each other, embrace arms, and then both excitedly run towards the student section, where they are cheered enthusiastically.

Floating Lions
The Blue Band performs "Hail to the Lion" and makes its way from its "PSU" formation to roll into spelling "LIONS" as it marches across the field. Once reaching the other side, the band reverses the "LIONS" to be readable to the East side of the stadium, while playing "Fight On, State." This is known as the "trademark drill" of the Blue Band.