After beating Mifflin County, 42-6, last week in Lewistown to open the season, State College football will play its first home game of the year on Friday night, a non-conference, interstate showdown with New Jersey’s St. Augustine Prep.
But ‘home’ means something different for the Little Lions this year. With Memorial Field out of commission until 2020 while undergoing renovations, State College will play its home games at the high school’s South Track field.
With a new atmosphere for players and fans, here’s what you should know about attending home games this season.
Kickoff Times
This week’s game will kickoff at 6 p.m. to accommodate the long trip home for the visiting team from South Jersey. State College Athletic Director Chris Weakland said St. Augustine extended the same courtesy to State High when the Little Lions visited last season.
Remaining home games (Sept. 6, Oct. 4, Oct. 11 and Oct. 25) are scheduled for 7 p.m. kickoffs.
Location
The South Track is located behind State College Area High School, 653 Westerly Parkway, on the southwest side of campus. It can be accessed from O’Bryan Lane, adjacent to the east side of the high school building, or Westerly Parkway, directly north in front of the building.
Parking
Parking for fans will be available free of charge in the lot next to the South Track and in the north campus parking lot across Westerly Parkway.
The South Track parking lot is separated into east and west sections by a pedestrian-only walkway, and there is no through-traffic between the two sections. Vehicles entering from Westerly Parkway must park in the west section and those entering from O’Bryan Lane must park in the east section.
ADA Parking will be available behind the east side of the South Track field, close to the seating. Those wishing to access ADA parking must enter on the O’Bryan Lane side and clearly display an ADA/handicapped placard or sticker. State College Athletic Director Chris Weakland said the ADA parking will be more convenient than it had been at Memorial Field, though addition of handicapped parking spaces is part of the renovations there.
‘The previous Memorial Field did not have tremendous ADA access, but this will and obviously our new Memorial Field will,’ Weakland said.
Fans cannot, however, park on surrounding neighborhood streets. The borough Parking Department will be placing temporary no parking signs on South Sparks Street between Westerly Parkway to Saxton Drive; Saxton Drive between Westerly Parkway to Bayberry Drive; and Windsor Court, Storch Road at South Sparks Street, and Edgewood Circle. Fans also should not, of course, park on private property.
Violations will be issued to vehicles parked in those areas during the no parking period.
Weakland said fans could also use the parking lot at Orchard Park and walk using the public path, but should be careful not to use private property as crossings or cut-throughs. A representative from the high school will be placed at key locations to direct traffic away from residences that would be used as pedestrian cut-throughs.
Admission and Capacity
As at Memorial Field, admission is $5 for adults, and $3 for students, youth and senior citizens. Two ticket booths will be located at the main entrance to the South Track.
Fans will be entering the facility through the same entrance as players and the marching band, and Weakland said fans are strongly encouraged to arrive early.
The seating capacity at the South Track is about 2,000, including the addition of three towable bleacher units of 300 seats each purchased by the district last year. Seating capacity at Memorial Field was 4,000. But, Weakland said, there is plenty of standing room at the South Track and fans may bring lawn chairs or blankets to sit on the hill north of the bleachers and lawn chairs for use south of the bleachers.
Backpacks are not permitted. Clear bags are OK, but may be searched by security.
Restrooms and Concessions
Portable restrooms and restrooms in the Queeney Events Center, to the immediate right when entering the South Track, will be available.
Concessions will be available behind the bleachers on the east side of the field.
After the Game
State College Borough approved a zoning amendment earlier this year allowing State College Area School District to install 70-foot tall lights at the South Track, where, in addition to the football team playing there this year, the field will also be used for other teams’ practices and competitions and marching band practices.
As part of that approval, the borough and school district reached an operation agreement for use of the lights. While in most cases the lights are to be turned off by 9:15 p.m., the agreement acknowledges that football games, which are only approved for the venue for this fall, will often run later.
Weakland said that as in the past, the marching band will still perform after the game. The new lights have a dimming feature that will be utilized to still provide adequate lighting as fans leave the field. Fans are asked not to loiter afterwards and to patiently exit in a timely manner.
Beaver Stadium
The possibility remains that State College could play one of its games at Penn State’s Beaver Stadium this fall, though no plans have been announced. Penn State Athletics confirmed earlier this month that it was interested in offering the stadium for one high school football game this fall and that the department was ‘working with the appropriate officials.’
The team across town seems a likely candidate. Little Lion home games against Central Dauphin (Oct. 11) and Cumberland Valley (Oct. 25) coincide with weekends when Penn State football is on the road.
‘Should that opportunity arise, I think it would be a great scenario for our senior class,’ State College coach Matt Lintal said recently. ‘To be the first class to not be on Memorial Field for their senior season but to have that opportunity to be there would be tremendous. We talk all the time as a program about dominating the things we can control, and that’s one of those things that’s far out of my hands so in the meantime we’re going focus on the task at hand.’
SCASD Superintendent Bob O’Donnell said this week that the district’s discussions about the possibility have been with the Mid-Penn Conference and that he is not aware of any decision yet.
‘Being where we’re located, we do have an interest if it does go in that direction,’ O’Donnell said.
