Reopenings around the country continue to be spreading as the nation gets through what will hopefully be the final stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. Sports stadiums and arenas welcoming back larger capacity crowds are returning more and more, and all eyes in Happy Valley are on what will happen with Penn State’s Beaver Stadium.
Earlier this month, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf announced the state’s COVID restrictions will be lifted on May 31, with the exception of the mask mandate. The mask mandate will remain in place until 70% of the state has been successfully vaccinated.
Effective May 31, we are lifting COVID mitigation orders.
The masking order will be lifted when 70% of Pennsylvania adults are fully vaccinated.
Help us lift the masking order sooner. Find a vaccine appointment near you: https://t.co/4UeI1Bx6rO. pic.twitter.com/o2vebK3lot
— Governor Tom Wolf (@GovernorTomWolf) May 4, 2021
So what does that mean for Penn State football? Simply put, it means can begin to expect to return to Beaver Stadium for football games this season, and perhaps with near-capacity crowds, if not full capacity.
Governor Wolf visited State College earlier this month and was asked about his thoughts on Beaver Stadium returning to a full 110,000-fan crowd.
“We want to make sure that they are safe,” Wolf said.
#Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf on Opening up Beaver Stadium for @PennStateFball in the fall
"We want to make sure that they are safe"#PennState pic.twitter.com/JZWFSDaXSG
— David Malandra Jr (@DaveMReports) May 5, 2021
We are still waiting to see what Penn State is going to do about having a sold out Beaver Stadium for the season, but the trends around the state and nation, and the Big Ten, continue to be encouraging for fans itching to attend a Penn State football game in 2021. Ohio State, Michigan, and Michigan State are among the Big Ten schools anticipating and preparing to allow full capacity crowds for football games this season. The Philadelphia Phillies and Philadelphia 76ers have already rolled out plans for full capacity crowds for June as well.
The last time Penn State played in front of a sold-out Beaver Stadium was November 30, 2019, when Penn State took down Rutgers.
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