Money might be getting tight in Happy Valley, but Penn State still expects to profit from its 2014 trip to Ireland to take on the University of Central Florida.
“We are actually hopeful it will be a slight positive,” Associate Athletic Director of Finance Rick Kaluza said during a board of trustees committee meeting on Thursday. “We will receive a guarantee amount from Central Florida that will offset, or we hope will offset our travel costs. It’s not a home game for us, so if we can recover to where we’re at the usual costs of an away game then it could be slightly revenue positive.”
Director General of the Gaelic Athletic Association, Paraic Duffy spoke with the media prior to Penn State’s meeting with UCF last weekend. Duffy anticipates a good showing for the game in his native country.
“We expect to sell all the seats,” for the Croke Park Classic, Duffy said. “Ireland is a great sporting nation, and there is great awareness of college football and American football, more than you’d probably think.”
“You’d be surprised at the brand awareness of Penn State in Ireland,” Duffy said. “If you asked Irish people to name a team, Notre Dame and Penn State are probably the first two names. That’s why Penn State was a very easy choice for us.”
The Croke Park Classic is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. ET Saturday, Aug, 30, 2014, in Dublin, Ireland, and will air on ESPN2.
