UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State men's soccer has announced its 2024 fall schedule featuring a 16-match slate and 10 conference matchups.
Under the direction of head coach Jeff Cook in his seventh season, the Nittany Lions will open their season at reigning National Champion Clemson Tigers on Thursday, Aug. 22 in South Carolina.
The team will return to Jeffrey Field Sunday, Aug. 25 to match up against the Black Knights of Army for their home opener. Penn State will continue their four-match homestand with matches against Pitt, St. Bonaventure and Cornell.
The Nittany Lions will kick off Big Ten play at Michigan Friday, Sept. 13. The team will then host Ohio State in their conference home opener Tuesday, Sept. 17.
The team will face Michigan State before traveling to St. John's for their last non-conference match of the regular season.
The Nittany Lions will start their October slate in Big Ten play at Maryland and will return to Jeffrey Field to face off against new Big Ten member UCLA on Friday, Oct. 4. This will be the first match since 2007 that the Nittany Lions and the Bruins will meet.
The Scarlet Knights of Rutgers will come to Happy Valley for a Monday night matchup on Oct. 7 before PSU embarks on a two-match road trip at Indiana and Washington.
Penn State will return home against Wisconsin on Saturday, Oct. 26 then go on the road to face Northwestern for their regular season finale on Sunday, Nov. 3.
Before the regular season begins, Penn State will play a pair of exhibition matches in August. The Nittany Lions will square off against Drexel at home on Saturday, Aug. 10 before going on the road to face the Eagles of American on Friday, Aug. 16.
In addition to Clemson, Penn State will face a trio of teams who made appearances in the 2023 NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Championship in Indiana, Pitt and UCLA.
The Nittany Lions finished the 2023 season 10-4-5 overall and 4-2-2 in the Big Ten. The Blue & White secured the program's fifth Big Ten Regular Season title and its 14th conference tournament appearance. Penn State will be led by midfielders Caden Grabfelder and Freddie Bell and defenders Mohamed Cisset and Matthew Henderson. Penn State inked six transfers with notable collegiate experience at the beginning of this year in Andrew Cooke, Chase Oliver, Christian Dionne, Jack Bonas, Kojo Dadzie and Michael Hewes.
