New attendance guidelines could be good news for Blue White Game, beyond

Gov. Tom Wolf and the state of Pennsylvania announced new Covid-19 guidelines on Monday that increased the attendance of outdoor venues across the commonwealth to 20%.

The news is exciting for Pittsburgh Pirates and Philadelphia Phillies fans, as the Major League Baseball season will get underway in a month, but there could also be some excitement for Penn State football fans.

The program’s annual Spring game, known as the Blue White Game, could now be a realistic thought thanks to the decrease in restrictions.

Although Penn State Football fans may still not be allowed into Beaver Stadium for the game, the fact that family, friends and possibly a few recruits, could be in attendance in an unofficial capacity, there’s a realistic chance that the game gets played, after being canceled last April.

Beaver Stadium’s capacity under the new guidelines of 20 percent is a little over 21,000 people, but the number may actually be smaller due to the fact that attendees must maintain six feet of distance. This is why it is unlikely that any fans without connections to a player or the program would be in attendance for the annual spring game.

An upside is that the team can use both sidelines, making social distancing easier for the players and staff.

Regardless, if the game was picked up by the Big Ten Network or ESPN, most Nittany Lions fans would jump at the opportunity to watch the game, considering it was cancelled last year, and most are clamoring for a sense of normalcy.

Penn State has not made any announcement regarding the Blue White Game yet. It can still be a bit of  a logistical nightmare. The game usually isn’t played until the second or third weekend of April, so there is time to make a decision.

The game is a good learning experience for younger players, and has it’s benefits from a football standpoint, so even though attendance would be minimal, there’s still reasons to play the game if possible.

At the end of the day, the risk may not be worth the reward, but the fact that this conversation is even happening is a step in the right direction and is a good sign for fan attendance when the 2021 season kickoffs in September.