Penn State’s Week 3 meeting with Buffalo did not draw a record crowd, and that was never really the expectation. Still, the numbers told a clear story: the non-conference finale came in as the lowest-attended game at Beaver Stadium since Nov. 2019, with the 2020 season excluded because no fans were allowed.
The reported attendance for the game was 103,817. That figure is still enormous by any normal standard, but it also marked the program’s smallest home crowd since 2020. The previous low was the 2025 FIU game, which drew 103,818.
For those who have long argued that Penn State should take a harder line on its non-conference schedule, the attendance dip fits neatly into the broader criticism. The program has faced that debate for years, especially during James Franklin’s time in charge, when he never shied away from acknowledging Penn State’s approach to out-of-conference scheduling.
One example from the 2016 season still gets cited in that conversation. Penn State played Pitt in the non-conference slate, while Washington lined up against Portland State.
Penn State won the Big Ten but lost to Pitt, and Washington beat Portland State. Washington, not Penn State, ended up in the College Football Playoff.
The landscape around the playoff has changed since then, though. The field has expanded from four teams to 12, and it will grow to 24 soon enough. With a bigger postseason field, there’s less incentive to load up on early September “cupcakes.”
Even so, Penn State’s future non-conference plans remain unsettled from Matt Campbell’s perspective. The Nittany Lions already have their out-of-conference dates booked through 2028, and Campbell had no role in setting those opponents.
For now, he says he has not even gotten into that conversation with athletic director Pat Kraft.
“I’m probably not even at the place to even conversate about it because I don’t know if I have my grasp around my own team and program, let alone what is that holistic value, how does that go,” Campbell said at his weekly press conference Sept. 15.
In Other News...
Penn State Has A Personal Reason To Mourn Ernie Accorsi
Penn State has another familiar NFL tie to reflect on with the death of Ernie Accorsi at 84, a longtime league executive whose influence stretched well beyond the front office. Before his work as general manager of the Giants, Colts and Browns made him one of footballs most respected builders, Accorsi had already left his mark in State College as a Penn State player, a connection that gives his passing a more personal weight for the program.
Accorsis football life was defined by the kind of moves that changed franchises, from helping bring Tom Coughlin to New York to helping set up the draft-day path to Eli Manning. The Giants later credited him with helping shape their 2007 Super Bowl run, and his place in multiple halls of fame reflects how widely he was admired across the sport, including by those who knew him long before his NFL fame. [Read more 🡒]
Chase Sowells Path To Penn State Says Plenty About Matt Campbell
Chase Sowells decision to head to Penn State says as much about Matt Campbell as it does about the wide receivers own priorities. According to Sowells father, the receiver passed on bigger money from other schools, including Florida, to play for Campbell, a detail that fits the larger picture around this move. Campbell has long carried a reputation for building real trust with his players, and Penn State looks to be benefiting from that pull.
The Nittany Lions have already seen plenty of Iowa State players follow Campbell to State College, a sign that the coachs influence travels well beyond one roster. For Penn State, that kind of loyalty matters because it can help make a transition feel less like a reset and more like a continuation of something already established. Sowells path adds another layer to that trend, even if the full impact of the move will take time to sort out. [Read more 🡒]
Penn States AP Poll Spot Says Plenty About What Comes Next
The latest Associated Press Top 25 did more than shuffle a few powers near the top. It also reinforced how crowded the national picture has become, with Texas still No. 1, Georgia right behind, and Notre Dame, Ole Miss and Indiana filling out the top five after another weekend that moved results and reputations together. Mississippi climbed to No. 4 after its win over LSU, while LSU slid to No. 10, a reminder of how quickly one result can alter the view of the contenders.
For Penn State, the broader message is just as important as the exact order. The SEC now has 10 teams in the poll, with Florida and Mississippi State joining the mix this week, which only adds to the pressure in a season where every ranking change matters. The Nittany Lions remain part of that conversation, and where they sit in the coming weeks will say plenty about how the committee of voters sees their path against a field that keeps tightening. [Read more 🡒]