Nittany Lions Add Auburn to Future Football Schedules

psu-footballUNIVERSITY PARK – Penn State Director of Athletics Sandy Barbour and Auburn Director of Athletics Jay Jacobs today announced the first-ever regular season gridiron meetings between the two traditional powers, set for the 2021 and 2022 seasons.

The Tigers will visit Beaver Stadium on Sept. 18, 2021 and the Nittany Lions will travel to Jordan-Hare Stadium on Sept. 17, 2022. The teams have met twice before in bowl games, with Penn State posting a 43-14 win in the 1996 Outback Bowl and Auburn earning a 13-9 victory in the 2003 Capital One Bowl.

Barbour also announced Penn State will host Buffalo on Sept. 7, 2019 and Ball State on Sept. 11, 2021. The Nittany Lions and Bulls will be meeting for the fourth time, while Penn State and Ball State will be playing for the first time. The Nittany Lions’ football schedules are complete through the 2019 season.

“We are excited that our fans will be able to see Auburn, Pitt, West Virginia and Virginia Tech in Beaver Stadium in upcoming seasons, in addition to our challenging Big Ten schedule,” Barbour added. “We are also looking forward to hosting quality MAC opponents with Buffalo and Ball State in future seasons.”

The 2021 and 2022 Auburn games add another marquee opponent to the Nittany Lions’ upcoming non-conference schedules:

• Penn State begins a four-game home-and-home series with Pitt this year (2016-19), with the first game on Sept. 10 at Heinz Field. The Nittany Lions will host the Panthers in 2017 and 2019;
• In 2020 (away) and 2025 (home), Penn State and Virginia Tech will meet for the first time;
• In 2023 (home) and 2024 (away), Penn State and West Virginia will clash for the first time since 1992. 

Penn State is 23-22-0 all-time against current Southeastern Conference schools, having played every SEC team except Arkansas, Mississippi and Mississippi State. The Nittany Lions’ most recent meeting with an SEC squad was against Georgia in the 2016 TaxSlayer Bowl; the most recent regular season contest was against Alabama in 2011 in Beaver Stadium.
The Nittany Lions vs. SEC teams overall: Alabama (5-10), Auburn (1-1), Florida (0-3), Georgia (1-1), Kentucky (3-2), LSU (2-0), Missouri (3-1), South Carolina (2-0), Tennessee (3-2), Texas A&M (3-1) and Vanderbilt (0-1).

Penn State has a 23-3 all-time mark against current Mid-American Conference members, having played every MAC school except Ball State, Miami (Ohio) and Western Michigan. The Nittany Lions’ first contest against a MAC squad was at 10-0 loss at Buffalo in 1900. The teams also met in 2007 and last year, a 27-14 Penn State victory, which is the Nittany Lions’ most recent game against a MAC team.

Penn State’s football schedules from 2016-19 are posted on GoPSUsports.com.

Penn State opens the 2016 campaign against Kent State at Beaver Stadium on Saturday, September 3.

Season tickets for the 2016 campaign, which includes five Big Ten home games for the first time, are on sale, with nearly 3,700 new season tickets having been sold. There will not be any increase in the price of Penn State football season tickets or Nittany Lion Club donation levels for next season.

Back to top button