Sept. 19, 2017
MT. NITTANY, Pa. -- The Nittany Lion returned to its natural habitat on Monday as Penn State Men's Basketball Coach Patrick Chambers led more than 20 members of the "Legion of Blue" student section, the Nittany Lion mascot, media and staff members to the top of Mount Nittany. Courtney Chambers and the four Chambers children - Grace, Ryan, Caitlin and Patrick -- also were part of "The Climb."
"It just doesn't take us to climb, we need everybody to climb, we need everybody to help us reach the top," Chambers said on his way up the trail. "We're close to the mountaintop and we want everyone with us."
Tied into the Nittany Lions' social media hashtag #ClimbWithUs, the excursion party left the Bryce Jordan Center for the trip to the Mt. Nittany Conservancy trail head on one of Penn State's iconic blue buses. The hike covered 1.2 miles round trip and reached an elevation of 1,900 feet at top of Mt. Nittany with views of the Bryce Jordan Center, Beaver Stadium, the University Park campus and State College.
When the "The Climb" ended at the overlook, Coach Chambers spoke to the group, the Legion of Blue students sang the Penn State alma mater and took pictures and selfies with Happy Valley in the background.
Only 52 days remain before the start of the 2017-18 men's basketball season. The Nittany Lions open the campaign by hosting Campbell on Friday, Nov. 10 and play again on Sunday, Nov. 12 versus Fairleigh Dickinson with games that bookend Penn State Homecoming activities.
Now in its third year, the "Legion of Blue" student section, more than 1,000 strong, supports the Nittany Lion and Lady Lion Basketball programs with spirit and support at games in the BJC and travel to selected away games.
Season tickets are available for all 19 games at the Bryce Jordan Center with 18 home events and an exhibition game against Bloomsburg on Sunday, November 5. Deposits for new 2017-18 Penn State men's basketball season tickets can be made by calling 1-800-NITTANY weekdays, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Eastern time, at the Athletic Ticket Office in the Bryce Jordan Center from 9 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. weekdays, or by visiting gopsusports.com/tickets/m-baskbl-tickets.html.
Keep up to date with the latest information from Coach Chambers and the Nittany Lions on Twitter by following @Coach_Chambers and @PennStateMBB, on Facebook and Instagram at @PennStateMBB.