No traditional Blue-White game on tap this spring
Penn State will not have a traditional Blue-White game in 2021, but it will host some fans at Beaver Stadium for the team’s final spring practice.
The Lions athletic department announced Wednesday that it will allow only University Park first-year students and the families and guests of student-athletes, coaches and staff members into the 107,000seat venue on April 17.
“We are pleased to be able to offer an opportunity for our first-year students to experience Beaver Stadium for the first time as Penn Staters,” Penn State President Eric Barron said in a released statement. “Because of the pandemic, these students have missed out on this special tradition of cheering on the Nittany Lions, and we hope this will be a memorable way for them to gather together and celebrate the final practice of the spring.
“While we are excited to offer this in-person opportunity, students must continue to do their part by following health and safety guidelines to bring this opportunity to fruition.”
Penn State said in a news release that plans for a virtual spring practice that is open to the general public will be announced at a later date.
The April 17 event “is part of the University’s phased plan to restore in-person student experiences and to steadily expand organized activities this spring as the pandemic and public
health and government guidelines allow,” a news release said.
It added that Univeristy Park first-year students will receive information about attending via their school email and that masks and other coronavirus mitigation practices will be required and followed. Additionally, tailgating will not be allowed and the practice will not be televised by Big Ten Network or anyone else.
“While first-year students have not yet been able to experience Nittanyville or take their spot in the best student section in the country in Beaver Stadium, we are thrilled they will be able participate in many other favorite traditions during this final spring practice, including the team entering the field, the Blue Band playing, cheer and dance squads performing, and the team singing our beloved Alma Mater,” PSU vice president for intercollegiate athletics Sandy Barbour said in a released statement.
“We are hopeful for the fall and continue to focus on the health and safety of our community and on providing the best opportunity for a full-capacity stadium for the Sept. 11 game against Ball State.”
When spring practice started back March 15, head coach James Franklin said that discussions were still ongoing about whether the almost-annual event would be held a year after it was canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic.
“From a football-strictly perspective, the things that I’m most comfortable speaking on, we will, on our Friday and Saturday practices, scrimmage,” Franklin said then. “We will get those opportunities in some way.
“A final practice or final scrimmage, however you want to put it, a lot of times those things in such a public setting like that are pretty vanilla. This would allow us to have a true 15th practice, where we’re putting everything out there from an evaluation standpoint as well.
“But there’s still some conversations that are being worked through.”
When April 17 arrives, it will mark the first time members of the general public, albeit a small and select group of it, will be allowed inside of the stadium since 2019.
According to a history of the Blue-White game published on the official website of Penn State Athletics, the public intrasquad scrimmage to end spring practice began back in 1951.
It has grown greatly in terms of popularity since then and had attracted over 70,000 people to Beaver Stadium and the lots surrounding it for a number of years.
Penn State opens the 2021 season at Wisconsin on Sept. 5.