BTN.com staff, August 31, 2012
Friday night marked the annual Penn State Football Eve at Beaver Stadium, and for several reasons, this pep rally was different than all the ones before it. For the obvious reason, this was the first event without head coach Joe Paterno, who was fired late last year and died months later. On top of that, the Penn State fan base has really rallied around this team and coach Bill O'Brien in the wake of the NCAA sanctions that crippled it this offseason.
And, as expected, the traditional cheer of "We Are … Penn State" roared through the stadium on a night where Penn State officials estimated 21,000 fans in attendance. Expect a crazy atmosphere at Saturday afternoon's season opener.
[AP: Playing for purpose: Penn State opens with Ohio]
Track all the Week 1 Big Ten action on our BTN.com scoreboard. Also, throughout Saturday's game, we'll provide quarterly updates on our Penn State-Ohio page.
At Penn State pep rally, animated hoops coach Pat Chambers just introduced the new cheer: "When I say one, you say team."
— Mark Wogenrich (@MarkWogenrich) August 31, 2012
https://twitter.com/BTNRickPizzo/status/241674116216807424
got some buzz going in Beaver Stadium for #pennstate Football Eve!! enthusiastic crowd!
— Brian Siegrist (@PSUSTRETCH) August 31, 2012
https://twitter.com/BTNRickPizzo/status/241675348624936960
https://twitter.com/GArmasAP/status/241679401593470976
Great to be at football eve right now. Can't wait for tomorrow
— Tim Frazier (@Timfraz23) August 31, 2012
The amount of support we have right now is unbelievable! Thanks to all our fans… Just a few more hours! #OneTeam
— Garry Gilliam Jr. (@Garry_Gilliam) August 31, 2012
great night for #pennstate Football Eve. estimated final attendance 21,000 fans as they streamed in to fill the student section.
— Brian Siegrist (@PSUSTRETCH) August 31, 2012