It’s been over nine years — and counting — since Tom Bradley was in Beaver Stadium.
The former Penn State coach was last on the field in April 2014, when he received the Community Hero Award at the annual Paterno Family Beaver Stadium Run/Walk event that raises money for Special Olympics Pennsylvania.
The last Penn State football game — home or away — for which Bradley was in Beaver Stadium was on Nov. 11, 2011, when Penn State played Nebraska. Bradley was the interim head coach, named to the position after Joe Paterno was fired, as the Nittany Lions lost to the Cornhuskers, 17-14.
Bradley’s streak ends this fall.
The former PSU coach will return for the Penn State vs. Illinois Watch Party on Saturday, Sept. 16, in the Football Letterman’s Lounge in Beaver Stadium. The game starts at noon and the event — which costs $60 and includes a tailgate buffet — is hosted by the State College Quarterback Club, and is open only to its 700 members and guests.
However, you can join the club and become immediately eligible to attend the event. Membership starts at $125/year; you can join at statecollegeqbclub.com/2023/07/01/2023-membership-signup-now-live/
Though the game is still almost a month away, time is of the essence. There is a cap on attendance (approx. 150 fans) and tickets go on sale on the Quarterback Club’s website at 9 a.m. this Saturday. You can reserve your spot at statecollegeqbclub.com/2023/08/10/away-game-watch-party-vs-illinois-9-16-in-lettermans-lounge/
Bradley will be joined by fellow Penn State legend Brad “Spider” Caldwell, Nittany Lion football’s longtime equipment manager who currently works in the Club & Suites Office at Beaver Stadium.
“Leave it me to be upstaged by Mr. Bradley ‘Spider’ Caldwell,” Bradley joked earlier this week. “It will be a lot of fun returning to Beaver Stadium alongside Spider and meeting the best fans in college football.”
It’s an important homecoming. Bradley was an integral part of Penn State football from 1975 to early 2012. He was co-captain of the PSU squad that played for the national championship against Alabama in the 1979 Sugar Bowl. He coached running backs, wide receivers, defensive ends, special teams and linebackers at Penn State, then served as defensive coordinator from 1999-2011. He guided the Nittany Lions’ defense to six consecutive Top 15 finishes in both total and scoring offense (2004-09). His 2004 defense did not give up more than 21 points in a single game.
When Bradley was interim head coach in 2011, his team defeated Ohio State, 20-14, in The Horseshoe, and he was on the sidelines while Paterno was in the press box for the Nittany Lions’ 13-6 win in The Horseshoe in 2008. Those were the last two times Penn State beat the Buckeyes on the road. Bradley, who holds a pair of degrees from Penn State, is in the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame.
After Penn State, he was senior associate head coach at West Virginia; defensive coordinator at UCLA; and defensive back coach with the Pittsburgh Steelers. He is currently on radio programs covering Penn State and the Steelers, and is co-host with Jay Paterno of the TV show, “Nittany Game Week,” which reaches over 20 million viewers in 11 states.
“The Quarterback Club is thrilled to have Tom and Spider host this event in a venue that is so amazing and so historic,” said club president John Souren, a 1990 Penn State graduate in business management and computer science. “The club is looking at ways to expand its outreach and there’s no better place to watch an away Penn State football game than Beaver Stadium.”
“We’ll have a Q&A with Tom and Spider before the game,” he added. “And throughout the game, they will be mic’d up to share their insight. They’ll also be talking with people during breaks and at halftime. It will be an interesting and interactive experience.”
The watch party is another in a growing line of special events at Beaver Stadium under athletic director Pat Kraft. There was an “Over The Edge” fundraising event in the spring, where donors to the United Way rappelled down the stadium’s facade. On the Beaver Stadium turf over the summer there was a yoga class for 300 people, hosted by The PYO Studio, and a night-time showing of “The Lion King” for 1,000 movie-goers. This week, it was announced that Luke Combs will bring his “Growin’ Up and Gettin’ Old” tour to Beaver Stadium on Saturday, April 27.
