ALTOONA, Pa. -- There's great excitement for Penn State's season opener tomorrow at Wisconsin. But we're also now just eight days away from 107,000 people cramming into Beaver Stadium for the Nittany Lions' home opener against Ball State.
They'll do so while this country is still in a pandemic. While COVID is still a major health concern, particularly the more dangerous and more transmissible Delta variant. And while many people still refuse to get vaccinated for the coronavirus, putting themselves and others at greater risk.
There will be nothing stopping any infected and contagious person from entering Beaver Stadium next Saturday. There will be no way for fans to know if the people jammed into the seats next to them like sardines will be safe. Or sick.
For all intents and purposes, life will be back to normal in the seats at Beaver Stadium next week. And while fans will be required to wear masks when they go indoors at the stadium, it will be a free for all in the stands.
Are we really so sure that's a good idea?
The folks at Penn State have made their decision. And they're ready to allow fans to come to the stadium and watch the game without wearing masks or showing proof of vaccination.
That doesn't sit too well with a former president of Nittanyville, the well-known group that describes itself as "a student run organization that camps outside of Beaver Stadium before Penn State home football games in order to have the best seats."
PSU alum Darian Somers, a lifelong Lion fan who oversaw the Nittanyville organization during his time in college, recently started a petition at Change.org seeking to require the school to have fans either show proof of vaccine or show a negative COVID test before entering games.
"I’d prefer that everyone be vaccinated or show a negative test, but I think I’d also support mask wearing, too," Somers said. "The problem with mask wearing is that it’s harder to enforce, and a lot of people still tend to wear a mask over their mouth and not nose and mouth. All of that being said, I’d truly prefer if everyone got vaccinated and that was required for entry.
"But I recognize that’s not realistic, especially for younger kids who still haven’t gotten the vaccine. When it comes to Penn State, it’s a community leader, right? Point blank, you could argue it’s the most powerful institution in the state. I’d put the Eagles, the Steelers and the actual government in that vein, too. Penn State and Sandy Barbour and everyone else is always preaching how much of an impact students can make, and here’s an easy opportunity to do it, and they’re not. And it’s sad."
The petition started by Somers has only garnered 326 signatures so far, so it's not like there is a tremendous amount of support for his idea.
But the big question remains: Should there be more support for this kind of idea?
Fans were not allowed to attend football games at all around the Big Ten last year. We now have the vaccine, which makes things a lot safer for everyone who takes it, but the bottom line is not everyone has received it.
"The required vaccination is not in our plan at this point," Penn State athletic director Sandy Barbour said two weeks ago. "We've been following the CDC, and you all know quite well as a campus as it relates to masking indoors.
"We're not going to require masking outdoors unless the CDC were to change its guides; we certainly would monitor and review that."
Barbour also said the university's decision not to require proof of vaccination balances health concerns and personal choice concerns.
While Penn State and other schools in the Big Ten won't be mandating fans at football games wear masks outdoors or prove that they're vaccinated, nine schools in the conference have mandated that all students, faculty and staff be vaccinated (or be tested weekly at some schools). Ohio State, Michigan, Michigan State, Indiana, Minnesota, Northwestern, Illinois, Maryland and Illinois have enacted vaccine requirements.
Penn State has not.
So, the university not only will be allowing fans to attend football games and watch from the stands without taking any precautions whatsoever, it also is not mandating that students, faculty and staff get vaccinated.
Is Penn State doing enough to keep everyone safe? What do you think the university should be doing with these decisions? Post your answers in the comments section.