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Beaver Stadium capacity: The 5 biggest crowds in Penn State football history

Beaver Stadium is the second-largest stadium in the country only behind Michigan Stadium, but just how many Nittany Lions fans have packed in to see Penn State play?

By Josh Yourish

Penn State students cheer on the Nittany Lions
Penn State students cheer on the Nittany Lions / Dan Rainville / USA TODAY NETWORK
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4. No. 2 Penn State 42 vs. No. 19 Michigan 13

No. 2. . No. 19. 485. . PSU Michigan. October 21, 2017. 491. Attendance: 110,823

In 2016, James Franklin was finally able to revitalize the program which was mired in scandal from the end of the Paterno era. Franklin led Penn State to an 11-3 season which ended with a loss to USC in the Rose Bowl. 

So, despite the disappointing end to the year and narrowly missing the College Football Playoff, Penn State fans had national title hopes after a 6-0 start to 2017 and packed Beaver Stadium for the mid-October showdown with Jim Harbaugh’s Michigan Wolverines. 

Saquon Barkley ran for two touchdowns in the first quarter and caught another in the fourth. He ended the game with 108 yards on 15 carries and added 53 more on three catches. DaeSean Hamilton turned in a six-catch 115-yard performance in the 42-13 beatdown. 

Penn State followed this win with road losses to Michigan State and Ohio State which dashed their chances of a College Football Playoff appearance. Barkley and Trace McSorley led the team to an 11-2 finish with a Fiesta Bowl win over Washington. 

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