UNIVERSITY PARK – Penn State will kick off the 2008 campaign with Penn State Football Eve on Friday, Aug. 29. The fifth-year event starts the new season with a festival-like atmosphere surrounding Beaver Stadium followed by a celebration inside the stadium with the team and Coach Joe Paterno.
The \”night before\” activities outside the stadium include a barbecue, festival food and fun along Curtin Road which will become a fan promenade at 6 p.m. Kids\’ games, food, surprises and an oldies band will all be part of the promenade.
Stadium gates open at 7 p.m. for fans who wish to be seated early with a showing of 2007 football highlights. The program inside the stadium starts at 7:45 p.m. featuring the Blue Band, cheerleaders, dance team and videos. The seniors will be introduced and after Coach Paterno\’s address to the crowd, a new stadium video will be unveiled.
Admission and parking are free for Penn State Football Eve. The Nittany Lions\’ 122nd season opener is against Coastal Carolina the following day at noon.
Penn State Football Eve, which launches the first weekend of the football season, has attracted approximately 25,000 fans in each of its initial three events. The 2006 event was canceled due to the remnants of Tropical Storm Ernesto.
Fans attending Penn State Football Eve can warm up for the event at the Penn State women\’s soccer team\’s home opener against Florida State, which begins at 5 p.m. Friday at Jeffrey Field. There is no admission or parking fee for the contest featuring the 10-time defending Big Ten Champion Nittany Lions. Also, the State College Spikes are hosting Mahoning Valley at 5:30 p.m. Friday at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park, across the street from Beaver Stadium.
The excitement for the 2008 football season pushed Penn State season tickets above 90,000 for the third consecutive year in Beaver Stadium, the nation\’s largest facility with a capacity of 107,282. More than 93,500 season tickets for this season are accounted for. More than 15,000 Penn State student season tickets for freshmen, sophomores and juniors sold out in approximately three minutes during each sale last month. There are more 21,000 season tickets for Penn State students.
Three games are sold out, with a limited number of tickets remaining for Coastal Carolina, Temple (Sept. 20, noon), Indiana (Nov. 15) and the Senior Day clash with Michigan State (Nov. 22). Any remaining single game tickets will go on sale at 10 a.m. on Friday, July 25, exclusively online at the official Web site of Penn State Athletics.
Paterno\’s 43rd Penn State team returns 37 letterwinners and 16 starters for the 2008 season. The Nittany Lions will face eight bowl teams from 2007 this fall, including five at home Penn State has won 31 of its last 40 games, tied for eighth-best record in the nation over that span.
All Penn State football and basketball games can be heard on the Penn State Sports Network and online at the official Web site of Penn State Athletics.