Penn State Nittany Lions news: Renovation updates, baseball schedule release, new P4P top-10 recruit, and more

While men’s basketball won its season opener against Canisius on Monday and returned to the hardwood on Thursday, and women’s basketball tripped up in its season opener against Cleveland State, falling 62-61 in Tanisha Wright’s first game at the helm, it hasn’t been a particularly busy week for Penn State athletics between the lines. 

Most of that action will come this weekend with football at Washington and women’s basketball visiting Cincinnati on Saturday, men’s basketball playing Pitt at The Palestra in Philadelphia on Sunday night, women’s hockey visiting Mercyhurst for a weekend set, men’s hockey hosting Notre Dame on Friday and Saturday at the Pegula Ice Arena, women’s volleyball on the road at Minnesota on Friday night and at Wisconsin on Sunday, and men’s and women’s swim and dive hosting Villanova on Friday. 

Before all of that action, though, let’s round up the most important news of the week, which largely happened outside the lines. 

Latest Beaver Stadium renovation updates:

On Wednesday, Penn State shared its latest update on the famously $700 million renovation of Beaver Stadium. The latest phase includes swapping out bleachers for chairback seats from end zone to end zone in the west lower bowl. The renovation will also add an additional 10 inches of legroom for every seat on the west side of the stadium, from 24 inches to 34 inches. 

The announcement also included a 360-degree main concourse and a “fully open 85,000 sq. foot west main concourse with new restrooms, drink rails, and standing room for all fans to enjoy.” 

The renovations, which haven’t exactly received universal acclaim from the fanbase due to rising ticket prices, should be completed in under a year. 

More: A new attendance-based incentive for 2027 student ticket lottery

On Thursday, Penn State Athletics announced a reward points plan for students who attend sporting events on campus. 30,000 Penn State Rewards points will be needed to win an extra entry into the 2027 student football season ticket lottery. The deadline to earn the 30,000 points needed is May 31. 

There are only 10,000 extra entries available to be claimed through this reward program, and the points can also be purchased; the cost of 30,000 points, according to Onward State, totals $135. 

It seems like a decent way to incentivize students to attend other sporting events on campus, that is, assuming your football tickets are in as high demand as usual. That requires putting a strong team on the field and winning out to get to 8-4 would probably drum up a fair bit of excitement about the team and this rewards program. 

Penn State baseball 2027 schedule released

On Thursday, the 2027 Penn State baseball schedule was finally released. The season starts in the Bahamas with the Atlantis Collegiate Baseball Series, featuring a three-game set against Auburn at the Andre Rodgers National Stadium in Nassau. 

Penn State does not play in the friendly confines of Medlar Field at Lubrano Park until Wednesday, March 17, nearly a month after the season-opening series begins on February 19, when it hosts Bucknell. 

Check out the full schedule below: 

Penn State wrestling recruits get rankings bump

On Wednesday, MatScouts dropped new pound-for-pound recruiting rankings for the 2027 class, and the new top 10 features three Nittany Lions: No. 4 Grey Burnett, No. 6 Landon Sidun, and No. 8 Gavin Magnano. Magnano was the newest addition to the top 10, jumping from No. 12 in the previous ranking after defeating Dean Anderson, who is No. 9 on the list. 

FloWrestling ranks Penn State’s class No. 2 in the country behind Virginia Tech, and has Landon Sidun as its No. 2 overall recruit. Penn State and Iowa are the only two programs, according to FloWrestling’s rankings, with four top-25 recruits in the country: Sidun, Burnett, Clinton Shepherd, and Magnano.

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