Penn State alumni community comes together to support historic football playoff run

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — As they were for every game this season, Penn State’s passionate alumni community was out in force when the Nittany Lions concluded their historic national semifinals run against Notre Dame at the Orange Bowl in Miami earlier this month. The Nittany Lions won 13 games this season, the most in program history, and the world’s largest and most powerful alumni base came together to show its support every step of the way to Miami. 

Excitement among alumni grew throughout the Nittany Lions’ 11-win regular season and their appearance in the Big Ten Championship Game, and that enthusiasm inspired several thousand Penn Staters to travel to the Fiesta Bowl and the Orange Bowl and attend Alumni Association events.  

Nearly 350 Penn Staters joined the Official Penn State Bowl Tour, organized by the Penn State Alumni Association and its official travel partner, Sports and Entertainment Travel. The trips featured luxury hotel accommodations; chartered transportation; exclusive events such as pep rallies, welcome receptions, and pregame tailgates; commemorative lanyards and credentials; and much more. Alumni and fans not on the tour still had the opportunity to join the excitement at several events, such as the pep rallies.  

The Penn State alumni community is well known for its dedication to making a difference in the world. In that spirit, travelers wrote dancer mail for students and alumni who will participate next month in THON (Feb. 21-23). 

Before traveling beyond Happy Valley, alumni and fans created a rocking environment and a record crowd at Beaver Stadium for Penn State’s first-ever home playoff game. Penn Staters began the weekend with a special Roar Tour on the University Park campus. While Roar Tour pregame pep rallies are usually held on the road to unite alumni and fans, the Alumni Association hosted the event to capture the energy and provide a spot for Penn Staters to gather the night before the game.  

The announced attendance for the contest against SMU (106,013) represents the largest postseason crowd Penn State has ever played in front of, surpassing the 1995 Rose Bowl against Oregon (102,247).  

For all three playoff games, in addition to the regular season, Penn Staters gathered at local watch parties held by many of the Alumni Association’s chapters. Membership in the Alumni Association includes access to its entire affiliate group network, which includes 125 chapters across the country and throughout the world.  

Video interviews with Penn Staters who traveled are on the Alumni Association’s YouTube page. Photos from the playoff run and accompanying events are on the Alumni Association’s Flickr page.  

Penn Staters can learn more about the Alumni Association by visiting its website and membership page. More information on how the Alumni Association unites Penn Staters during the football season is on the organization’s game day page.