Blue White Illustrated

nentially if it includes basketball (Jesse Arnelle, Suzie McConnell), volleyball (Megan Hodge, Ivan Contreras), field hockey (Candy Finn) and other teams. Penn State sports historian Lou Prato predicts that the university is likely to honor a female athlete next. Said Prato, former director of the All-Sports Museum, "Penn State was way ahead of the curve when it started its women's sports program in 1964. " Cappelletti said he was told that Penn State "didn't want to make this a onetime thing, so it's all but assured that " additional numbers will be retired. But there has been a backlash that might give athletic officials pause as they consider who to honor next. Some see the gesture as a further erosion of the football program's team-first ideals, the continuation of a trend that began when Penn State put names on the backs of its football jerseys last season and affixed Mauti's No. 42 to players' helmets after he suffered a season-ending knee injury in November. When BWI polled website subscribers about which Penn State athlete should be the next to have his or her number retired, the discussion quickly turned into a denunciation of the university's decision to retire any jersey. "The whole idea is hairbrained as hell, wrote " one subscriber. "If PSU makes another move on the idea of retiring jersey numbers, it should be to UNretire No. 22. " So while questions about how to go forward are likely to bedevil Penn State now that it has set a precedent, many fans are still grappling with the question that underlies the entire issue: Why do it at all? Like so many retirement celebrations, this one has inspired mixed emotions. – MATT HERB FOOTBALL Dublin officials hope for Croke Park sellout FOOTBALL HD scoreboards coming to PSU next season It used to be home to the socalled Spread HD. But starting next season, Beaver Stadium will feature an entirely different brand of high-definition. The university announced Sept. 3 that it is planning to install highdef scoreboards above each end zone, along with a new sound system. Construction will begin in December following the conclusion of the 2013 season. Officials hope to have the $6.8 million renovation project completed in time for the Blue-White Game in April. The new scoreboards are expected to be much larger and completely digital. They will measure 115 feet wide by 36 feet, 11 inches tall and will sport the Penn State "chipmunk" logo on the side facing the parking lots. Mark Bodenschatz, associate athletic director of operations, said the scoreboard project was undertaken because the current system is out of date. "Our scoreboard is essentially at the end of its useful life," he said. "We have been keeping it together, but there have been so many technological improvements and advancements in scoreboards that have happened in that past 12 years. " Organizers of the Croke Park Classic say they are expecting to sell out the Dublin stadium when American football returns to Ireland next August. The stadium will hold 68,000 fans in its football configuration, and that's how many people are expected for the Croke Park Classic between Penn State and UCF. "We expect to sell out all of the seats for this game, said Paraic Duffy, director " general of the Gaelic Athletic Association, prior to the Nittany Lions' game against UCF on Sept. 14 at Beaver Stadium. "Ireland is a great sporting nation. Dublin is a great sporting city. There actually is a much higher awareness of college football and American football in Ireland than you would expect. " Duffy said the Nittany Lions were the GAA's first choice to play in the game. "You'd be surprised at the level of brand awareness of Penn State, he said. "In " terms of college football, if you asked people in Ireland to name college teams, Notre Dame and Penn State would probably be the first two names that would come out. So that's why Penn State was a very easy choice for us. "

• Cover