What a night! Our family journeyed by bus to Happy Valley—a whopping 3 miles from my home—that would have taken 2 hours (at least) had we attempted to drive. We might have walked. Next time, we shall! It was our first Penn State football game. Hence, your questions:
- Why did it take you twelve years to attend a Penn State football game? Well, first of all, the tickets are expensive. And you have to find them. This isn’t as easy as people might think. Most people have season tickets, and you have to pay a large fee to grant you eligibility to even begin buying tickets. It doesn’t matter that I work for Penn State. So, sadly, a family of four might pay up to $800 to attend a single football game. Can you imagine?
- So how did you get to this game? Back in August, we began hunting for tickets for a friend from Michigan who wanted to surprise her dad (a huge Penn State fan) with tickets as a birthday present. As we asked around, we found tickets for these friends, but the seller had extra tickets to buy at face value that we could afford.
- Why now? Three reasons: Our daughter, Sarah, is currently deciding where to attend college. We wanted her to have a true “Penn State Experience” before she chooses another college. There’s nothing like a Penn State White Out to let her experience college life here at PSU. Secondly, I’m not a Michigan fan. At all. I did not love graduate school there, and I’d gladly root against a Michigan team. And remember, I’m a Virginia grad, so my loyalties weren’t ever with the school where I earned my PhD. Lastly, it was a White Out game. For some, this ranks as a sublime experience. 110, 669 people in white, all screaming for their team and singing in unison! It’s nuts! It’s loud!
- Did you love it? Yes! What a wonderful night. We visited two tailgates (one very elaborate and posh), watched the stellar Blue Band, cheered with everyone, and enjoyed ourselves. But at 1:00 AM as the bus drove us back to our car, I thought about how, next time, I might also like to watch from my cozy, warm couch with my cats by my side.
Here are some photos to enjoy!
