Penn State Sports Magazine
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S E P T E M B E R 2 0 2 5 11 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M decks enclosing the end zones. The new additions will help fill in some of those areas. The renderings that have been re- leased of the finished project show only small gaps between the grandstands and the end zone sections. It looks almost like a continuous bowl. The final design might not resemble the renderings, but it's been enough to generate excitement within the program and among fans. "I think the temp bleachers look great, better than I was expecting," wrote one fan in BWI's Lions Den mes- sage board. "The scale of the whole project with the major steel up is just as impressive. It's amazing to me that it's finally happening. Excited to see the finished product." The stadium project isn't scheduled for completion until the summer of 2027. In the meantime, Franklin said he's excited about the atmosphere that Penn State will be able to conjure up as it chases Big Ten and national champi- onships in 2025. "I think the stadium is going to look phenomenal," he said. "Those decks they have in the corners, that's always been empty, they put in these temporary stands — not just in the big ends of the big sideline, but those corners. And I'm sitting there looking up thinking, why didn't we do that in the past? That was wasted space forever. Even the tempo- rary bleachers, I think that's awesome. I think that's a huge opportunity for us." Franklin lauded athletics director Patrick Kraft and deputy AD Vinnie James, who have gotten the stadium renovation project off the ground af- ter Penn State spent many years doing feasibility studies while struggling to come up with the funding it would need to move forward. "I think Pat and Vinnie have done a phenomenal job," Franklin said. "You're going to see a ton of upgrades this year, and then obviously next year is going to be crazy. There's been a ton of hard work and really good ideas about how to maximize that stadium and how to make it as loud as possible. It's always been a great venue. I think it's only go- ing to get better." ■ The stadium renovation project is focused primarily on rebuilding the west grandstand, but there will be changes elsewhere. PHOTO BY MARK SELDERS/PENN STATE ATHLETICS Nittany Lions Among Big Ten Attendance Leaders With its temporary seats still under construction as of early August and awaiting the necessary safety inspections, Penn State had not announced Beaver Stadium's expected seating capacity this fall. Nor do we know what the facility's permanent capacity will be when the project is complete in 2027. Prior to the demolition of the stadium's west side in December, its official capacity was listed at 106,572. The Nittany Lions averaged 108,083 fans per game last season, a figure that was largely due to the stadium-record crowd of 110,030 that watched them fall to Ohio State, 20-13, on Nov. 2. Here's a look at how the Lions stacked up against their Big Ten counterparts in average attendance during the 2024 season. — Matt Herb BIG TEN TEAMS RANKED BY ATTENDANCE Rk. School Stadium Capacity Avg. Att. (2024) Pct. Capacity 1. Michigan Michigan Stadium 107,601 110,548 102.7 2 Penn State Beaver Stadium 106,572 108,083 101.4 3. Ohio State Ohio Stadium 102,780 104,216 101.4 4. Nebraska Memorial Stadium 85,458 86,900 101.7 5. Wisconsin Camp Randall Stadium 80,321 76,057 94.7 6. USC L.A. Memorial Coliseum 77,500 71,571 92.3 7. Iowa Kinnick Stadium 69,250 69,250 100.0 8. Washington Husky Stadium 70,138 68,865 98.2 9. Michigan State Spartan Stadium 75,005 65,307 87.1 10. Purdue Ross-Ade Stadium 57,236 59,887 104.6 11. Oregon Autzen Stadium 54,000 59,104 109.5 12. Illinois Memorial Stadium 60,670 54,750 90.2 13. Indiana Memorial Stadium 52,626 48,374 91.9 14. Rutgers SHI Stadium 52,454 48,341 92.2 15. Minnesota Huntington Bank Stadium 50,805 47,467 93.4 16. UCLA Rose Bowl 89,702 46,805 52.2 17. Maryland SECU Stadium 51,808 36,040 69.6 18. Northwestern Lanny and Sharon Martin Stadium* 12,000 17,470 145.6 * Temporary facility