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WATCH: Penn State Brings Down the Press Box at Beaver Stadium

Penn State kicked off the $700 million Beaver Stadium renovation by demolishing the stadium's press box.

Mark Wogenrich

A vew of Penn State's Beaver Stadium press box after the Nittany Lions' win over SMU in the College Football Playoff.
A vew of Penn State's Beaver Stadium press box after the Nittany Lions' win over SMU in the College Football Playoff. / Mark Wogenrich/Penn State on SI
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Penn State kicked off the renovation of Beaver Stadium on Saturday morning with a demolition project. Penn State bid farewell to the aging structure atop Beaver Stadium, knocking it down to make way for a completely new West side of the stadium. The demolition marked the next major step of a $700 million construction project that is scheduled to reintroduce Beaver Stadium to Penn State football fans for the 2027 season.

As snow fell in State College, Penn State made a morning event of the press box demolition, inviting fans to watch and film the process. Before knocking down the press box, Penn State has salvaged some memorabilia from it for sale at a future date.

The Beaver Stadium press box was original to Penn State's Beaver Field, which the university disassembled and moved across campus to its current location for the 1960 season. Penn State expanded the press box to its current size in 1980. The four-floor press box housed media and broadcasting facilities, along with the stadium's original suites, and long was the subject of being replaced. Penn State had intended to build a new press box before deciding last year to conduct a major renovation of Beaver Stadium. The press box was old and cramped, which Penn State coach James Franklin referenced Saturday, noting that someone on Twitter had called it "the worst press box in the Big Ten."

"Whether you agree with that or not, I'm not sure, but we were fighting to be in the argument, right?" Franklin joked.

The press box, which Penn State expanded in 1980, also had quite a history. It hosted countless legendary broadcasters. Keith Jackson, Beano Cook, Lee Corso, Jim Lampley, Vern Lundquist, Harry Kalas, Gus Johnson, Paul Maguire and Al Michaels have called games from the press box's second level. Todd Blackledge, Matt Millen, Dan Fouts, Dick Vermeil, Frank Broyles, Bob Griese and Pat Haden have been among the analysts. Joe Paterno spent a day every year in the Beaver Stadium press box doing the radio broadcast of Penn State's Blue-White spring game, often alongside brother George Paterno. He also coached from the press box on occasion in the mid-2000s. Steve Jones and Jack Ham, the radio team on the Penn State Sports Network, have made the press box their home since 2000.

The press box project begins what Penn State is calling a "large-scale demolition" of Beaver Stadium's upper West side. Crews will be on-site 24/7 for the next six weeks to prepare the site for construction that will take place ahead of the 2025 season. Penn State plans for some temporary seating for the 2025 season but has not announced details.

Penn State moved quickly after its first-round playoff win over SMU to begin essential preparations for the press box demolishing and the start of reconstruction of Beaver Stadium's West side. Just days after the Dec. 21 game, the parking lots around Beaver Stadium's West side were fenced and construction equipment moved into place. Penn State spent about $4 million of its initial renovation budget on repair and maintenance to ensure that Beaver Stadium could host a December playoff game. With that success behind it, Penn State now gets to work on the core of the renovation.

According to a timeline Penn State released last summer, Phase 1 of the renovation begins with the first elements of the West side demolition. Penn State plans to bring down the press box and the upper deck seating and replace both sectors. Penn State Athletic Director Patrick Kraft has said that some fans will have temporary seating conditions during the 2025 season. During Phase 2 of the renovation, which begins in 2026, Penn State is scheduled to demolish and replace the stadium's lower bowl. Fans will be impacted during the 2026 season as well. If the project goes according to schedule, Penn State will reintroduce a revitalized Beaver Stadium for the 2027 season.

Penn State is renovating Beaver Stadium in part to position it as a year-round entertainment and event destination in State College. The university wants to host major events, such as concerts and sporting events, as well as smaller events such as corporate meetings, private functions and basically any large or small gathering in central Pennsylvania. That's why Penn State officials scrapped the idea of simply completing Beaver Stadium's $200 million repairs backlog, which they said would produce a $655 million deficit over the next 30 years. Instead, if conducted according to their budget models, the $700 million renovation would generate a $44 million profit, officials said.

"I know there was maybe some anxiety about [the Beaver Stadium renovation], and I think it's going to create some challenges in the short term," Franklin said. "But I think long term, it'll be in everybody's best interests. It will be a stadium that everybody's really proud of and will create a lot of amenities that we need. ... I do think this is well needed. But I also know at a place that doesn't love change, it's also scary. But I think in the long term, it's going to be a win for everybody."

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Mark Wogenrich
MARK WOGENRICH

Mark Wogenrich is Editor and Publisher of AllPennState, the site for Penn State news on SI's FanNation Network. He has covered Penn State sports for more than two decades across three coaching staffs and three Rose Bowls.

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