Penn State football enters offseason fundraising push with annual HVU golf tournament, auction

Penn State football just completed its annual spring showcase weekend, holding the Blue-White Game on Saturday, surrounded by multiple fan engagement events. The Nittany Lions and their partner collective, Happy Valley United, will work to continue building that NIL fundraising momentum on Monday with their second annual Penn State Football Golf Tournament.

Again held at the West Shore Country Club in Camp Hill, Pa., the event is set to begin at 11 a.m. with a noon shotgun start for golfers, followed by a 5:30 p.m. reception. Participants through the day are to include Penn State head coach James Franklin, members of the Nittany Lions’ coaching staff, as well as current and former players in the program.

In addition to the NIL-supporting golf tournament, Happy Valley United is also holding an accompanying charity auction. Multiple Penn State football-specific items are up for bid, as well as a selection of unique sporting event opportunities.

Highlights include a signed jersey from former Nittany Lion and current Dallas Cowboys NFL All-Pro Micah Parsons, a signed jersey and football from Miami Dolphins’ defender Chop Robinson, and a Penn State hat signed by LBU stars Michael Mauti and LaVar Arrington. Fans of the Nittany Lions’ recent NFL Draft selections can also find a signed mini helmet from Abdul Carter and a signed print of Tyler Warren‘s record-setting performance against Southern Cal during the 2024 season.

Other events up for grabs include a pair of club box tickets at Beaver Stadium when Northwestern visits on Oct. 11, 2025, and a pair of VIP tickets to HVU’s “We Are… At the Shore” in Avalon, N.J., in July. Golf experiences include four passes and parking courtesy West Shore Homes to this year’s U.S. Open at Oakmont Country Club, with accompanying tickets to that evening’s “We Are… in Pittsburgh” at Fox Chapel Golf Club. One golf threesome at West Shore Country Club and one golf foursome at Hershey Country Club are also up for bid.

All auction items are posted here.

Penn State maintains NIL push in changing lanscape

While name, image, and likeness rules are evolving to permit university athletic departments to allocate funds directly to players, the role of collectives have remained important in the major college sports landscape. At Penn State, that has included a key component of football’s roster formulation beyond player acquisition via the transfer portal. In addition to key, but few, portal pickups like transfer receiver Trebor Pena over the weekend, the program has focused its NIL energies on retaining experienced and accomplished performers with competitive offers.

Joining Steve Jones last week on the Penn State Coaches Show, Franklin detailed the method that has cleared the way for high-profile player retention.

“I know there’s some frustrations or concern or lack of understanding about NIL. But I would say that this is one, to me, obvious positive of NIL,” said Franklin. “You have a lot of guys every year that are third or fourth year players, and they’re trying to make the decision on whether they should leave early to go to the NFL or come back. And in the old days, when we were making these decisions, they would have to turn down third, fourth, fifth round, sixth round money in the NFL to come back to college for nothing.

“Now you’re able to say, ‘Okay, well, let’s not worry about that, because we can help with some of that. And now just make the best decision for you and your family, for your education, and for your football future.’ And you’re not asking young men to walk away from significant money in the NFL.”

Likely 2025 NFL Draft selections returning to Penn State this season include quarterback Drew Allar, running backs Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen, end Dani Dennis-Sutton, and safety Zakee Wheatley.

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