Thursday, September 25, 2008
Over 100,000 fans will be wearing white when the Nittany Lions host Illinois.
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) — The “White House” will be open in Happy Valley Saturday.
Big games at Penn State mean a “White Out” at Beaver Stadium, when the school calls for its crazed fans to wear white. It creates a surreal glow on the field, with cameras flashing to capture the moment and stadium lights beaming from above.
Good luck with that, Illinois.
“Prime time, the stage is set so high,” quarterback Daryll Clark said Wednesday. “And then the ‘White House’ is what we call it. The big white out.”
Having all fans wear the same color has grown in popularity around college football. Penn State had its first student “White Out,” in 2004 against Purdue. The dark blue from the Penn State uniforms is the next most dominant color that stands out when that happens.
The Nittany Lions’ most memorable “White Out” was the following year, when they defeated Ohio State in a game that unofficially marked Penn State’s return to national prominence following a string of four losing seasons in five years.
Penn State’s first all-stadium “White Out,” for all 110,000 of its fans, was last year against Notre Dame, a 31-10 victory.
The Georgia Bulldogs plan to wear black jerseys instead of their traditional red for the Alabama game Saturday night, and they’re urging all their fans to don the color as well for the nationally televised game.
Hundreds of miles away, at the same time, the 22nd-ranked Illini (2-1) and undefeated and 12th-ranked Nittany Lions (4-0) open their Big Ten seasons.
Illinois quarterback Juice Williams isn’t fazed.
“It’s a place I’ve played in before. I know it’s going to be a hostile environment,” said the Illini’s run-pass threat. “Just go out there, have fun and fly around with the ball. It’s something we’re used to doing.”
Hostile might be an understatement. Illinois’ win over Penn State last year at Champaign propelled the Illini to one of its most successful seasons in years and a Rose Bowl appearance.
Another sign of an important weekend in State College is “Paternoville,” the makeshift tent city that sprouts up on the concourse outside Beaver Stadium the week before big games.
Students were already snugly settled into their tents by lunchtime Tuesday as coach Joe Paterno walked into the stadium for his weekly news conference.