By Chris Buchignani
What began as a dream is now reality: The unparalleled spectacle of a Penn State home football Saturday will collide with the national fanfare of college football’s first 12-team playoff right here in Happy Valley the weekend before Christmas.
Fans and locals pondered the tantalizing possibility from the moment that the sport’s ruling powers announced the addition of on-campus games to an expanded postseason. Thanks to a memorable 11-win regular season from the Nittany Lions, their moment has already arrived in year one of the new format.
For head coach James Franklin and his team, the game represents an opportunity to launch a national championship campaign with the help of 107,000 enthusiastic friends. The University, meanwhile, will benefit from the promotion and visibility that comes with a presence on the national stage, while the regional economy can enjoy the early holiday gift of a bonus windfall.
The electricity coursing through the entire community since the game’s announcement underscores the uniquely symbiotic relationship between town and gown here in Happy Valley.
What makes our place unique is also integral to what makes it special. Unlike even most other college towns, which have emerged as among the most desirable growth destinations of the young century, State College, as the name implies, grew up almost entirely around the R1 university that calls it home. In Pennsylvania, the 1850 Land-Grant Act’s quintessentially American impulse of democratizing higher education expressed itself in the ambitious founding an agricultural college amid the pastoral landscape of a fertile, but undeveloped mountain valley. As the vision of Evan Pugh and Old State’s other founding leaders blossomed into a flagship university, the modest town around it expanded in response. When Penn State thrives, Happy Valley flourishes. And as the young men who carry the University’s banner and brand into action on the gridiron achieve great success, the entire area reaps the rewards.
Likewise, when the team struggles, local business owners share the pain. Since 2000, the State College economy has persevered through the slog of four losing seasons in five years (’00-04), the aftermath of scandal and sanctions, and the disappearance of students and football crowds during COVID. Every such downturn, in its own way, challenged the heart of our people even as it took a piece of their livelihoods. But each time, like the team in which so many here take such pride, Happy Valley has – as ever – survived, overcome, and emerged stronger and better on the other side. It speaks to the intimate bond the community shares with the Nittany Lions.
The details of Penn State’s greatest seasons (of which there have been many) are enshrined into local legend. The scars of every setback remain fresh. Here, the games themselves are both entertaining distraction and serious business. Moreover, the team embodies the spirit of the place; their struggles serve as a proxy for a school and town that are always striving to be better. It’s why we hoped for this game as a chance to show the world the best of who We Are.
The advent of playoff football’s long-anticipated arrival to Beaver Stadium highlights this area’s novel ability to command the national spotlight while also offering an unmatched year-round blend of rural charm, diverse entertainment, and dynamic brainpower. For retirees looking to reconnect with some of their warmest memories, young alumni seeking to balance opportunity with quality and pace of life, entrepreneurs in search of a resource-rich retreat from the metropolitan bustle in which to incubate their passion project, and corporations who need access to talent in a place their employees will love to live, Happy Valley delivers.
On and off the field, the story of this place remains one of perseverance and success. It’s one you should want to experience for yourself, especially at a time like this, when the road to college football’s national title might just begin at the foot of Mount Nittany.
Chris Buchignani is co-host of The Obligatory PSU Pregame Show, contributor to several other Penn State-focused media outlets, and vice president of the Mount Nittany Conservancy. He teaches a class on Penn State Football History for Penn State OLLI.
