College Football’s Spring rite

By: Greg Maresca

Spring has its share of traditional rites and rituals. In Happy Valley, the home of the Penn State Nittany Lions, one spring rite that still survives is the football program’s annual spring game.

The 2025 version will be a Blue-White game like none other. With the antiquated press box and a large section of the west stands now history and under renovation, the spring game marches on but for how long?

Ever since its inception in 1951, the Blue-White Game has been a staple of Penn State’s time-honored football culture. Head coach Rip Engle started the tradition to mark the end of spring practice. The first game was played at State College High School’s Memorial Field because Beaver Field as it was known then was, ironically, undergoing renovations.

Evidently, some things never change.

Back then the game was known as “The Bucket Bowl,” with each squad competing for an old water bucket trophy.

Beaver Stadium has been the home for Penn State football since 1960. However, parts of the stadium date back to 1909. Over the years, it has undergone several expansions and renovations making Beaver Stadium the second largest college football stadium in the country.

With Beaver Stadium undergoing a $700 million renovation, the stadium’s name will remain, but for the first time on Saturday, the iconic field will sport its own identity. The naming of fields, stadiums and soon to emerge: parking lots (why not?) is business as usual in today’s collegiate sports’ landscape. Such things are necessary to keep pace with every other bigtime program and to finance the incredible costs of Beaver Stadium’s revitalization. Selling the rights to name the field to the highest bidder is certainly a given.

For the first time in the stadium’s 65-year history, the playing field will be known as West Shore Home Field at Beaver Stadium thanks to a hefty price tag (are there any other kind?) of $50 million paid by the Werzyn family and West Shore Home. The new name will be in effect through 2039. The stadium will retain its original name, Beaver Stadium, for now. Not everyone was pleased with the change as this one-time cow pasture in the middle of nowhere will now possess its own suburban gentrified surname.

I wonder what their old coach from Brooklyn would say. After all, his name, image and likeness (NIL) are missing in action. But I am sure the program would certainly accept any monetary donations for their NIL fund in his name – without hesitation.

Some even suggested that his name (Paterno) just in case you forgot, should be associated with the stadium. Instead, Penn State has exorcised everything Paterno. Who knows where Paterno’s statue is? Melted down to accommodate the new and improved erector set look? The only evidence of Paterno is in a mural located far from public view inside the entrance to the stadium’s media room. The Paterno figure is perhaps ten inches in scale wearing those famous glasses, blue jacket and khakis amongst his players taking the field. Other than that, nothing else for the winningest coach in Division I college football who put this program on the map with two national championships and 37 bowl game appearances.

With Paterno exiled, will the annual spring game follow his fate along with the leather helmet and black, high-top cleats to the college football ash heap.

A subtle hint of things to come can be found via the parking lot.

Sound crazy?

For the first time in the spring game’s history, Penn State will charge for parking. Admission to the game is still free, but fans will have to pony up $20 per car and $60 per RV. All passes must be purchased by credit card as there will be no cash sales putting the kibosh on any potential skimming.

Concerns over injuries, the ever-looming transfer portal cloud, and an extended season thanks to the expanded College Football Playoff convinced 18 programs so far to opt out of their annual spring game.

Texas and Nebraska are two that replaced their game with a fanfest featuring a football skills competition. LSU held a generic practice with an autograph session. Oklahoma hosted a simulated NFL combine competition. USC and Michigan dropped the game over injury concerns, while Florida State claimed stadium renovations for their exit.

Collegiate football rosters have become most unhinged thanks to the transfer portal and NIL deals.

The NCAA spring transfer portal for football opened April 16, and the numbers entering this athletic vortex grew by the hour. The NCAA won’t release the players’ names, but the intrepid folks at On3 reported at least 3,200 players entered the first day and the numbers have been increasing daily.

Penn State’s spring game is Saturday, April 26, the day after the transfer portal closes.

When former New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick took the top job at North Carolina, his contract required that $13 million annually be allocated to football. In addition, the school agreed to increase their NIL budget from $4 million to nearly $20 million. Belichick’s first transaction in the portal landed him South Alabama quarterback Gio Lopez who has three years of eligibility left and is the sixth ranked player in the portal. Lopez signed a two-year, $4 million contract.

Spring, summer, winter or fall, this sure ain’t your daddy’s college football.

The Penn State Blue-White football spring game serves as more than just a sporting event; it is certainly a boost in the arm of the local economy. Hotels, restaurants, bars, and other businesses benefit greatly from the faithful’s annual spring fling to Beaver Stadium and State College. Such a draw will most likely keep the ardent faithful finding their way to Happy Valley in late April in some form or fashion that down the road has a certain spring football fanfest written all over it.

Conversely, like naming rights, removal of statues and exorbitant parking fees, nothing remains static.

The tradition continues at Penn State – for now.