In just a few hours, Happy Valley will become a hotbed of Penn State homecoming events. And you can bet the streets, sidewalks, hotels and restaurants will be jam packed with visiting alumni.
There’s not only a parade and a football game — there’s the opening of the Pegula Ice Arena and fans will be getting a sneak peek at the men’s and women’s basketball teams in action. Here’s a quick homecoming survival guide.
Beginning at 3 p.m. Friday, Penn State’s field hockey team takes on Big Ten rival Ohio State. The game is the field hockey team’s official Power of Pink Day with all proceeds going to fight breast cancer. The first 250 fans will receive a free pink tee-shirt.
The Penn State Homecoming Parade gets underway Friday starting at 6 p.m. The parade will make its way across campus and down College Avenue. More than 200 student, community and alumni organizations will be taking part along with the Blue Band.
The parade route will be closed to traffic from approximately 5:30 PM to 8:30 PM. Parking along the route will be restricted. Westbound traffic on East College Avenue will be detoured onto University Drive. Sections of Porter Road and Curtain Road near Beaver Stadium will be closed at 5:30 p.m. and will reopen once the parade leaves that area.
Several on campus parking lots will be closing due to the parade. Free parking will be available on campus from 4 until 9 p.m. That includes the Red A lot off North Atherton Street, They Nittany Parking Deck at the Nittany Lion Inn, The East Parking deck near the corner of Bigler and Curtin, the Eisenhower Deck next to Eisenhower Auditorim and the HUB deck next to the HUB-Robeson Center. Click HERE for details.
There will be no CATA bus service on the Blue Loop or Green Link during the parade. The White Loop and Red Link will run modified routes. Click HERE for details.
If you can’t make it out for the parade, StateCollege.com has you covered. We’ve set up a homecoming camera so you can watch all the action at the intersection of College Avenue and South Allen Street. This is a prime spot to watch the parade and we have an audio hook up too! Click HERE to check out the scene during the parade or anytime you want.
Right after the parade, attention shifts to Penn State’s Men’s Hockey game against Army Friday at 8 p.m. It will be the first game at new Pegula Ice Arena so you can expect big crowds on University Drive.
The men’s soccer team will also be in action Friday night. The Nittany Lions take on Michigan at Jeffrey field starting at 8 p.m.
On Saturday, the Penn State football team tackles the Michigan Wolverines. Game time is 5 p.m. The parking lots will open at 8 a.m. Remember to buy your parking pass before heading to the stadium. It costs $10 when you buy in advance and $40 if you purchase your pass at the stadium. You can get more gameday parking information by clicking HERE.
It’s not just football. Penn State men’s and women’s basketball teams will be holding intra-squad scrimmages at the Bryce Jordan Center. It’s free to the public.The Men will play from 10 a.m. until noon. The Lady Lions take over the court from noon until 2 p.m.
And if that’s not enough for you, expect some crowds around the BJC Sunday night. Blues legend BB King will perform at BJC Sunday at 7:30.
