8 Penn State Game-Day Traditions Pennsylvanians Would Never Skip

For a lot of Pennsylvanians, a Penn State home game is an all-weekend affair.

Kickoff is only part of it; many fans have rituals they wouldn’t miss for anything.

Here are the game-day traditions that keep Nittany Lions fans coming back.

1. Beaver Stadium Tailgating

Tailgating at Beaver Stadium is a century-old tradition, according to a 2018 StateCollege.com report.

It runs rain or shine.

Many die-hard fans arrive early in the morning, hours before kickoff, to set up.

Walking the lots, you’d see RVs decked out in blue and white, games of cornhole, and grilled hot dogs and burgers.

There’s a sense of hospitality too, where everyone is welcome, including fans of the visiting teams.

If you’re a Purdue fan on Oct. 31, that includes you.

2. Overnight RV Lot

A group of die-hard fans turns tailgating into a whole weekend in the overnight RV lot outside Beaver Stadium, according to a 2019 StateCollege.com report.

The lot, called the ORV lot, opens Thursday night before home games.

If you want a prime spot, early birds start lining up on Orchard Road before then.

If you’re heading to the lot for Purdue weekend, Thursday is Oct. 29.

3. Team Arrival and Blue Buses

Team Arrival is Penn State’s free walk and pep rally before every home game.

It starts two and a half hours before kickoff at the Beaver Stadium Block Party on Curtin Road, according to Penn State Athletics.

The cheerleaders, Lionettes dance team and Nittany Lion mascot open with the pep rally.

Then the blue buses drop off the team at the corner of Curtin Road and Porter Road.

The Blue Band leads the team down Curtin Road to the South Tunnel.

You can line the street to high-five players and coaches on their way into the stadium.

If you’re in the lots as the buses come into sight, the Lewistown Sentinel says you’ll hear car horns sound and tailgaters cheer.

4. Blue Band Pregame

If you’re in your seat before kickoff, the Penn State Blue Band’s pregame includes a drum major flip.

Jeff Robertson was the first to perform the flip at a game, during the 1971-72 season.

After 1977, the flip became an audition requirement for the drum major position.

The band’s floating lions drill is part of the pregame too.

The drill was the idea of then-assistant director Ned C. Deihl.

The Lewistown Sentinel describes the drill as spelling out LION in one direction before flipping it the opposite way for fans on both sidelines.

You can read it from either sideline.

5. Nittanyville

Nittanyville began the Sunday before the 2005 Ohio State game.

Since then, students have camped outside Beaver Stadium for the entire week leading up to a home game, the Lewistown Sentinel reports.

Student-section seats are assigned on a first-come, first-served basis.

If you’re a Penn State student, you can register in groups of up to 10 to join the camp.

The camp was called Paternoville until the name changed to Nittanyville after Joe Paterno’s death.

A 2015 report on the campout lists a slam-dunk competition, pep rallies and coach visits among the events.

If you see tents outside the stadium during game week, you’re looking at Nittanyville.

6. We Are Penn State

The ‘We Are Penn State’ chant dates to Sept. 11, 1976, when cheerleaders first cheered it in Beaver Stadium.

If you hear someone yell ‘We Are,’ the Daily Collegian says the crowd responds ‘Penn State.’

That exchange typically runs three times in a row.

Then comes a quick ‘thank you’ from whoever started it and a ‘you’re welcome’ from the crowd.

The football team comes out of a tunnel directly beneath the student section.

That’s often when you’ll hear ‘Zombie Nation’ play as fans chant ‘We Are Penn State’ across Beaver Stadium.

7. White Out

Penn State held its first White Out game on Oct. 9, 2004, against Purdue, according to the Centre County Historical Society.

The White Out became a stadium-wide event in 2007, when Penn State beat Notre Dame 31-10.

A 2014 Penn State news release on its themed game days called the White Out one of the most iconic scenes in college football.

That release encouraged all fans to sport white attire, so if you go to a White Out, wear white.

If you’re in the stands, you’re part of a crowd that the traditions page puts at roughly 110,000 fans dressed in white.

The Altoona Mirror reported in August that the Oct. 10 game against USC would be the 19th full-stadium edition.

Kickoff was listed for 7:30 p.m. on NBC.

8. Victory Bell

Coach Rip Engle started Penn State’s Victory Bell to tell fans about away victories, according to the Lewistown Sentinel and the Daily Collegian.

Engle’s original bell came from the battleship USS Pennsylvania.

The bell on the south side of Beaver Stadium today isn’t that original.

If you’re looking for it, it hangs in the south end zone, where it returned in 2009.

Team captains typically ring it after each home victory, between the game clock hitting zero and the walk to the locker room.

If you’re at the Purdue game on Oct. 31, a Penn State win would mean the bell rings.

Beaver Stadium Tailgate Limits

Beaver Stadium tailgates have to fit within an 8.5-foot-by-15-foot space, according to Penn State Athletics’ A-Z guide.

If you bring a tent or canopy, keep it no larger than 10 feet by 10 feet.

Tents can’t save parking spaces or block travel lanes.

Every aisle has to keep a defined Emergency Access lane down the center.

Chairs, tables and tents can’t go in that lane.

If you grill, you can’t use charcoal and wood fires of any type, tow-behind grills and smokers, fire pits, or portable heaters with visible flames.

Flagpoles taller than 20 feet, drones, box trucks, converted ambulances and converted fire trucks are also prohibited.

Glass bottles and containers aren’t allowed in grass parking areas.

If your group wants to park side by side in the same assigned lot, Penn State Athletics’ football parking FAQ says to meet off campus.

Your group should also coordinate travel to arrive at the same time.

Home Dates After Purdue

If you’re planning ahead, Penn State’s 2026 schedule has two more home games after Purdue, Nov. 14 against Minnesota and Nov. 21 against Rutgers, according to Penn State Athletics.

That puts your Thursday ORV hours on Nov. 12 and Nov. 19.

Beaver Stadium Bag Policy

Beaver Stadium's bag policy lets you carry clear plastic, vinyl or PVC bags up to 12 by 6 by 12 inches, according to the A-Z guide.