Penn State Sports Magazine
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N O V E M B E R 2 0 2 1 6 3 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M the Water Tower. I don't even remember the color of the buses." In those early years, a small contingent made up mostly of players' relatives would greet the buses. When the buses returned to the East Area Locker Room after the game, there would be some cheers for the players, but most fans leaving the parking lots paid little attention. Head coach Rip Engle did not hold a formal postgame news conference back then. What may seem amazing today is that re- porters were allowed inside the locker room to interview coaches and players. I did it myself throughout the 1960s. That routine and itinerary continued until the end of the 1977 season. In a major engineering feat, seating sections in Beaver Stadium were moved and raised prior to the '78 season. In addi- tion, the running track on the perimeter of the field was elimi- nated, making room for a concrete grandstand in the south end zone. That project also included a new but not very large locker room straddling a wire fence at the gate, a small media room for postgame press conferences and a short tunnel for the team to enter the playing field. The blue buses still transported the team from the East Area Locker Room or the hotel where it stayed overnight. It remained a rather subdued part of the routine, with mostly family and friends greeting the players. The team's arrival hadn't yet evolved into the exhilarating tradition that it is today. At the end of a recent news conference, Franklin described how the buses get to the stadium on Saturday from the Penn Stater Hotel, where the team stays on Friday night. It's not a direct route, because the buses have to avoid two busy highways east of the hotel, I-99 and the Route 322 bypass, both of which are usually clogged with fans driving toward the stadium. "Instead of coming out there on the highway, we make a right and go down the street … to a gravel road," Franklin explained. That gravel road, hidden from the public, is on the north edge of the overnight RV parking lot behind the Ag Arena. "You see the stadium," Franklin said, "and there is a family that sits there, and they've got a really cool tailgating area. … They usually give us a big cheer when we go by. … That's really when you get the first idea of how packed they are [in the RV lot]." The gravel road leads to Fox Hollow Road, which runs from the airport to the stadium, where the buses encounter intermittent traffic. "If you go left, it takes you to the stadium," Franklin said. "Go right there on Fox Hollow and before you go under the [322] underpass, like you're going back to Toftrees, we make another left …" This road, which is now paved, is adjacent to the former Army Reserve facility. Franklin said the two buses eventually turn on the intersection with the Penn State Law building on the left and the Arboretum on the right. This actually is the north end of Bigler Road, one of the busiest thoroughfares on campus. "We make the left there by the law building," Franklin con- tinued, "and there is a student section … and they're going crazy. Then you start to work through campus, and everybody is walking to the stadium or walking to that student tailgate area, and [the excitement] starts to build and you get a feel for it." From the traffic light at the intersection of Park Avenue and Bigler Road, the buses slowly crawl past throngs of fans making their way toward the stadium or the Creamery and finally reach the Lasch Building. "The other bus of players is waiting for us, the guys who aren't on the travel squad," Franklin said. "They join in, and we continue to weave our way through campus and start to pull up toward the baseball stadium." Penn State's Transportation Services division has provided the buses and drivers for decades. Manufactured in Richmond, Ind., the newer buses have a hoodless front, and although they are painted blue by the manufacturer, there also is a white stripe down the middle that needs to be covered. So, the entire bus still needs to be repainted in Penn State blue. Keith Beisel, Penn State's Fleet Services manager, has been in charge for nearly 25 years. "They still use full bench seats for 20 to 22 people," Beisel said. "They are driven by our most senior drivers. This is the biggest deal we can do here [in Transportation Services] and especially for our drivers." It's also a big deal for the players, coaches and fans. ■ In one of Penn State's longstanding game-day traditions, fans gather outside Beaver Stadium to greet the arrival of the team buses at the south entrance. PHOTO COURTESY PENN STATE