Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1378330
- looking forward to receiving my second dose." Another point of emphasis at the news conference was the importance of the vaccination effort in helping the state's business community recover from losses brought on by the pandemic. Penn State football is an economic engine that drives much more than just the univer- sity's athletics department, and the re- turn of fans to Beaver Stadium this fall would be a boon to the hospitality and tourism industries in Centre County, just as the return of live sports elsewhere in the state would help other communities. "This is not just about Penn State football. This is about the com- monwealth of Pennsylvania," Franklin said. "We know how im- portant it is for our community and fans to have our college foot- ball and professional teams in all sports returned to full capacity. These teams have an economic impact on our communities and provide a sense of togetherness for every fan base. Getting the vaccine will help protect our community and our children, who are not yet eligible to get the vaccine. Getting the vaccine will help our local businesses by allowing them to return to normal operation and having large gatherings like football games to boost the economy." ■ "To the guys, it meant a lot," he con- tinued. "For the guys who were out there last fall, it was a tough situation, being in a 107,000-seat stadium with nobody in it." For all the difficulties that teams like Penn State endured, the 2020 season was actually a pretty typical year in some ways. Alabama, Clemson and Ohio State made the College Football Playoff, boosting their collective total to 15 ap- pearances in the seven seasons that the playoff has existed. And the Crimson Tide won the championship, just as they had in six of the past 14 seasons. At the sport's highest level, it was business as usual on the field. There are a handful of programs in the tier below the super-elites that have the resources and desire to compete at that level. Penn State is one of those pro- grams, but to get where it wants to go, it needs a lot of things to go its way. It needs to be able to capitalize on all the aspects of its program that make it unique, the things that its opponents can't match. White Outs are atop that checklist. The environment for those games is something nobody can entirely duplicate, so it's little wonder that the staff is eager to get those turnstiles spin- ning again. In early May, Franklin and Wolf held a joint news conference to encourage peo- ple to get vaccinated. The presser took place in the glass-enclosed lobby of the Pegula Ice Arena, with Beaver Stadium visible in the distance – a backdrop that was surely intended to be part of the message. "I want to see those stands across the way filled as much as anybody here," Wolf said. "But to make it safe for all of us to come together again, we really need more Pennsylvanians to get the vaccine." Added Franklin, "We want our Ball State game on Sept. 11 to be our first family reunion in almost two years, and we want Beaver Stadium and all of Happy Valley rocking." Those comments came amid a slow- down in the national vaccination rate. It was a worrisome moment in the bat- tle against COVID, and it's by no means over. But there were some hopeful signs in recent polling data about vac- cine hesitancy. A survey by the Covid States Project found that the number of vaccine refusers – those who say they won't get it under any circum- stances – is only about 18 percent of the population. Many other vaccine- hesitant people just need a little nudge. If you make it more convenient for them or incentivize vaccination in a way that makes it a higher priority, they'll get it. That's where college football comes in. Much as people may have appreciated the return of sports after their abrupt shutdown at the outset of the pandemic, no one wants them to look like they did last year, with their vacant grandstands, weird silences and creepy "Twilight Zone" lighting. No disrespect to Rod Serling, but this is one rerun we could all do without. ■ CENTER STAGE Franklin speaks to the media at a May 5 news conference at Pegula Ice Arena. Photo courtesy of Commonwealth Media Services