Report: Donald Trump no longer expected to attend Penn State-Ohio State game
Former President Donald Trump is no longer expected to attend Penn State’s home game against Ohio State Saturday, according to the Centre Daily Times.
“The University has been notified that former President Donald Trump will no longer be attending the Ohio State-Penn State football game,” Penn State spokesman Wyatt DuBois told the CDT Wednesday morning via email.
Trump was originally expected to attend the game in Beaver Stadium, a top-four matchup between the No. 3 Nittany Lions and the No. 4 Buckeyes, just three days before Election Day. He was already on campus this past weekend for a campaign rally at Penn State’s Bryce Jordan Center, which plays host to the Nittany Lions men’s and women’s basketball teams as well as concerts, ceremonies and other events.
Earlier this fall, Trump showed up to another top-four college football showdown, a Sept. 28 clash between then-No. 2 Georgia and then-No. 4 Alabama in Tuscaloosa’s Bryant-Denny Stadium. The Crimson Tide won, 41-34, but only after Georgia stormed back from a 28-0 deficit and momentarily took the lead late in the fourth quarter.
Trump also attended an NFL game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and New York Jets on Oct. 20 in Pittsburgh’s Acrisure Stadium.
News of Trump’s potential visit to Penn State’s Beaver Stadium broke last week when Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger reported that Trump’s team was “making plans” for him to go to the game in State College, which is now one of only two matchups between ranked teams this week in college football.
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The university said in a statement last week that Trump had been invited by a private citizen to attend as a suite guest, and that the U.S. Secret Service was working on security measures, along with University Police and Public Safety as well as other state and local law enforcement.
The CDT reported Wednesday that “it was not immediately known what led to the change in plans.”
Both ESPN’s “College GameDay” and FOX’s “Big Noon Kickoff” will be in State College for the highly-anticipated Big Ten game that has conference championship race and College Football Playoff implications.
While Penn State enters the week undefeated, Ohio State already has one loss this year. The Buckeyes dropped a one-point heartbreaker on the road against now-top-ranked Oregon on Oct. 12.
Saturday is an opportunity for Ohio State to leapfrog Penn State, whereas the Nittany Lions will try to snap a seven-game losing streak to the Buckeyes.
It could be a classic, for which Trump is no longer expected to be in attendance.