May 13, 2014
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -
Penn State's Homecoming clash with Northwestern is set for a 12:00 p.m. kick on Sept. 27 in Beaver Stadium, the Nittany Lions' fifth announced start time for the 2014 season.
The Big Ten Network, ESPN or ESPN2 will televise Penn State's 95th Homecoming contest, with an announcement on the televising network likely 12 days before the game.
Penn State owns an on-field Homecoming record of 68-21-5, with a 17-4 mark since starting Big Ten Conference competition in 1993. The Wildcats have been the Nittany Lions' Homecoming foe twice previously, with Penn State winning in 2002 and 2012.
The Nittany Lions have posted an on-field mark of 13-3 against the Wildcats, with the last meeting resulting in a Penn State 39-28 comeback win in the 2012 Homecoming contest. Penn State visits Northwestern on Nov. 7, 2015, as the Big Ten begins East and West Divisions this season.
Penn State's annual Homecoming activities include a Friday evening parade through campus and downtown, guarding the Nittany Lion Shrine and the naming of a Homecoming King and Queen and their court.
The Northwestern game is Penn State's fifth announced kick time for the 2014 season. Coach James Franklin's Nittany Lions will open the season Aug. 30 vs. UCF in the Croke Park Classic. The game will kick at 1:30 p.m. in Dublin, Ireland (8:30 a.m. ET) and air on ESPN2, the Penn State Sports Network and GoPSUsports.com. Penn State will be playing its first international game in its 128-year history when it travels to Ireland to meet the Knights.
Penn State opens Big Ten play at Rutgers on Sept. 13. The contest between the old rivals, and new Big Ten East Division foes, will kick at 8 p.m. and air on BTN, the Penn State Sports Network and GoPSUsports.com. The Nittany Lions will visit Michigan on Oct. 11 for a 7 p.m. ET clash that will air on ESPN or ESPN2. The Big Ten East Division contest will be Michigan's first Big Ten home night game. Penn State will host Ohio State on Oct. 25, with the East Division clash set for an 8 p.m. kick on ABC, ESPN or ESPN.
Rutgers and Maryland will officially join the Big Ten on July 1, 2014 and Penn State will play both annually as East Division foes. The Nittany Lions host the Terrapins on Nov. 1. The three schools are joined by Indiana, Michigan, Michigan State and Ohio State in the East Division.
Every Penn State football game has been televised the past 10 seasons and 240 of the last 242 contests overall have been on TV. All Penn State football and men's and women's basketball games air on the Penn State Sports Network and www.GoPSUsports.com.
Franklin, nine other head coaches and nine assistant football coaches, are it the midst of the 17-stop Penn State Coaches Caravan, which ends May 22 at Penn State Erie. Franklin is scheduled to appear at all 17 events. For all the Coaches Caravan event dates and locations and coaches attending, visit: alumni.psu.edu/events/coachescaravan.
More than 3,000 new season tickets have been sold for the 2014 campaign. There again was no increase in season tickets prices for Penn State football for the upcoming season. New season tickets are available by calling 1-800-NITTANY, weekdays from 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
Penn State announced two new football ticket initiatives in January.
- The Recent Graduate program gives Penn State graduates who earned an undergraduate degree from 2010-14 at any campus the opportunity to purchase up to two season tickets for $300 per ticket for the seven-game home schedule this fall. The cost includes a $50 donation to the Nittany Lion Club and is a savings of 35 percent from the regular $460 season ticket price ($360 + $100 NLC donation).
More than 450 Recent Graduate program season tickets have been sold, with approximately 2,500 seats remaining available. The seats are located in the North Upper Deck, in Sections NAU-NLU. Interested recent graduates can call 1-800-NITTANY, weekdays from 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
- Penn State will be implementing a variable pricing structure for its single game public football tickets during the 2014 season. Single game tickets will go on sale to the general public in July, with tickets being available for as low as $40 for some games. For a full list of prices by section for the 2014 football season, fans can log onto: http://www.gopsusports.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/011414aab.html.
Penn State returns 41 letterwinners and 15 starters (7 offense, 7 defense, 1 specialist) and will play a trio of 2013 Top 10 teams this fall. The Nittany Lions will host Rose Bowl Champion Michigan State (Nov. 29), Ohio State (Oct. 25, 8 p.m.), Northwestern (Sept. 27-Homecoming, 12 p.m.) and Maryland (Nov. 1) during its 2014 Big Ten home schedule. Penn State will host Akron (Sept. 6), UMass (Sept. 20) and Temple (Nov. 15) during its non-conference schedule.
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