Sep 9, 2013
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State's final non-conference game, against Kent State, will kick at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 21 in Beaver Stadium. Big Ten Network will televise the contest, marking the Nittany Lions' third consecutive game on BTN.
The Penn State Sports Network and www.GoPSUsports.com will begin coverage of the Penn State-Kent State game at 2:00 p.m.
Penn State and Kent State will be playing for the fourth time, with the last meeting in 2010 in Beaver Stadium. Kent State won the Mid-American Conference East Division last year and was No. 25 in the final 2012 BCS rankings with an 11-3 record. The Golden Flashes (1-1) visit LSU this Saturday before coming to Happy Valley.
The Kent State game is All-University Day, with students from all Penn State campuses in attendance and the campuses recognized at halftime. The contest also is a Blue Out game. Fans are encouraged to wear blue attire to support Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape (PCAR). Official Blue Out shirts can be purchased at downtown State College retailers, including the Penn State Bookstore, with proceeds benefiting PCAR.
The announcement brings the total of known Penn State (2-0) start times to six for this season. This Saturday's home clash with UCF (2-0) will kick at 6:00 p.m. on BTN. The season opening win over Syracuse aired on ABC/ESPN2 and last week's win over Eastern Michigan was on BTN.
Penn State's other two announced kick times also are in primetime, as the Nittany Lions will host Michigan (Oct. 12, 5 p.m.) and visit Ohio State (Oct. 26, 8 p.m.). Penn State's 94th Homecoming game, against the Wolverines, will air on ESPN or ESPN2 and the clash at Ohio State will air on ABC, ESPN or ESPN2. A determination on which network will nationally televise the Michigan and Ohio State games clash may not be made until six days before the contests.
The remaining six Penn State kick times and TV information will occur within the Big Ten's 6 or 12 day selection process, which is underway with the games of Sept. 21.
Every Nittany Lion football game has been televised the past nine seasons and 230 of the last 232 Penn State contests overall have been on TV. All Nittany Lion football and basketball games air on the Penn State Sports Network and www.GoPSUsports.com.
BTN is available to more than 90 million homes through agreements with more than 300 cable, satellite and telco providers in all 50 states and Canada. Armstrong, Blue Ridge and Adams Cable, though, do not carry the Big Ten Network in Pennsylvania and the Medina and Youngstown, Ohio areas. More than 35,000 Penn State alumni live in the communities served by the three cable providers in Pennsylvania and the Medina and Youngstown areas, in addition to thousands more fans and current Penn State students.
Armstrong, Blue Ridge and Adams Cable customers missed more than 110 Penn State events on BTN during the 2012-13 academic year, in addition to coverage from 15 conference championships.
Coach Bill O'Brien's Nittany Lions improved to 2-0 with a 45-7 win over Eastern Michigan last Saturday. The Penn State defense did not allow any points and only 183 yards, including just 44 yards and two first downs in the second half. The Nittany Lions gained 574 yards, their highest total in five years, including 108-yard rushing efforts by Bill Belton and Akeel Lynch. Quarterback Christian Hackenberg broke the Penn State freshman record for passing yards in a game with 311 yards, going 23 of 33 with one touchdown and one interception.
For information on joining the Nittany Lion Club and purchasing season and single game tickets, as well as club seating in Beaver Stadium, fans can visit www.GoPSUsports.com/tickets or call 1-800-NITTANY weekdays from 8 a.m.-5 p.m.