The White Out is the biggest event on campus every year (second biggest behind THON in terms of importance, but the biggest in terms of capturing a national audience). How do we decide which game makes the most sense to be this year’s White Out?įirst and foremost, the White Out should NOT be a game that is broadcasted on the Big Ten Network. Just because Penn State announces that the White Out will take place for a certain game, does not mean that whatever TV company has the rights to that game will put it in their primetime slot. While that’s not necessarily a bad idea, there are still some obstacles. That’s an atmosphere that packs a physical punch, a classic epitome of the White Out.With some rumors swirling that this year’s Penn State vs Ohio State game might not be a primetime game, many fans have tossed around the idea of deploying the White Out for a different opponent, to try to ensure that it takes place under the lights. That’s only 14 decibels short of when people start to feel pain in their ears. Penn State fans in 2014 registered 111 decibels during the White Out game against Ohio State. That’s an unrivaled intimidation factor, if you ask me. When you find out your team is playing Penn State in the White Out, you know you’d better be ready, because you know Penn State will be. Fans storm the field after Penn State upset No. It’s off-putting to an opponent, and it gets the job done. Year after year, players report rattling helmets, the ground shaking beneath their feet, and having to scream just to hear the teammate next to them. But a man with an appreciation for good football and a close game against a whited-out Penn State in 2014 can do strange things to the psyche. Called PSU “one of the top 5 atmospheres” in CFB.Ī renowned football coach doesn’t just say that against any team with a 4-2 record. ‘I wish they’d save the Whiteout for other games,’ OSU coach Urban Meyer said today. Perhaps the quote that best explains the power of a White Out came from Urban Meyer last year in anticipation of his team’s clash with the wall of sound and white. And while I hate the marketing scheme of making every game “themed,” I believe there are other options worth exploring that bring us together. It’s not like it’s the white that gets us going - in my opinion, the stripe out turns out pretty cool, too. It’s like the boy who cried wolf: The coach and student section who called White Out. It will lose its effect and people won’t know when to go all out. It’s the best atmosphere in college football.īy asking fans to wear white for every game, we are running the risk of destroying one of the core identities of modern-day Penn State football. It’s once a year– the entire stadium participates, and the game means something. One of the reasons the White Out “works” is because everyone gets so excited. If last year’s Ohio State game was away or a noon kickoff, could the Nittany Lions have come back? Does a four-overtime victory against Michigan and “ The Catch” even happen without a White Out game under the lights? Allen Robinson’s famous catch that rocked a 2013 white out crowd. White Out games have been among the most important in recent Penn State football history. Unofficially, however, the second unspoken rule (that I thought was obvious but apparently not) is that the white out must be held in Beaver Stadium. There’s really only one “rule” for the White Out game: You have to wear white. James Franklin got so excited about how well the White Out worked against Ohio State last season that he started encouraging fans to wear white to practically every game from then on. The first stadium-wide white out happened in 2007 and since then, Penn State has hosted (usually) one White Out game each season, typically the most important game of the year against the biggest opponent, often at night. The first-attempt at a student section “White Out” in 2004. Promoted primarily with guerilla marketing, the student section held the first white out in 2004 and the following year the first successful student section-wide White Out took place, resulting in a legendary win over Ohio State. Penn State football needed a boost in the early 2000s, and some smart marketing folks determined there would be more unity if everyone was wearing the same color. It’s also seen the creation of one of the most unique spectacles in college sports: the White Out.įeared among opponents and cherished by Penn Staters, the White Out game is an incredible tradition, but one we might lose if we keep staging these impromptu, pseudo-white outs. Trials and tribulations, joy and suffering, sanctions and Big Ten Championships. The last decade has held a lot for Penn Staters.
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