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What will the Beaver Stadium capacity be in 2025? Penn State AD Pat Kraft talks that, temp seating, renovations, and more

Greg Pickelby:Greg Pickel•about 9 hours•

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Penn State athletic director Pat Kraft. (Syndication: Hanover Evening Sun)

Penn State athletic director Pat Kraft spoke with reporters on Monday for the first time since his department released its latest renderings and information related to a planned $700 million Beaver Stadium renovation project. He said he’s happy with the progress made since it was first announced almost a year ago. Here’s what he said:

On the progress made so far

“I feel really good about where we are,” Kraft said. “We put out the renderings. We showed you kind of where we are in the process. Fundraising has been awesome. It shows that when Penn Stater’s get behind something. I feel really excited about that.”

What will Beaver Stadium look like for the 2025 home opener?

“We’ll have temp seating,” Kraft said. “To give you an example, kind of think of Northwestern a little bit, how they built that stadium on the lake. Or, like, if you go to the [PGA’s] Waste Management [Open], they build that stadium [seating] around the 16th [hole]. Like, [the company that did those] are doing the production. There’s that lip that we took the top part off [where the press box was on the west side]. There will be bleachers. I think it’s 7,400 or so on that space. We’re looking even at seeing if we can add more seats to that. It’ll look very temporary.”

Will the temporary seating impact the 107,000-seat capacity?

“We should be at full capacity, with the temp [seating], we’ll be really, really close,” Kraft said. He went on to note that parking and stadium entry shouldn’t be impacted during the regular season. But, time will tell.

On the potential impacts the construction could have on the Blue-White game

“The spring game is going to be a little interesting,” Kraft said. “Little interesting. And by interesting, I really don’t know what it’s going to look like. We’re expanding the East Side concourse [this offseason], so we’re doubling the East Main Concourse, and I got to hit a mark of [being done by] that Nevada game. So, you know, look for our information on how to get in the building, and get around the building. And I understand, you got the best football team in the country, and everybody wants to get in. So we’re going to try. We’re going to really work on some things to figure out nuances to that.

“But the West is going to be under construction, and so it’s going to be a bit of an interesting Blue-White game. But we’ll make sure we get everyone information on how to enjoy it.”

Final word from Penn State AD Pat Kraft on the status of the Beaver Stadium renovation project

“Really happy about where it’s going,” he said. “I really believe it’s going to be something fans are going to be proud of. We’re trying to make it so it’s as loud as humanly possible and continue to keep this as the greatest home-field advantage in all of sports.

“I’m happy. I’m excited about where it’s going and the direction we’re headed with it.”

What do the latest Beaver Stadium renovation renderings from Penn State look like?

You can see them below. While work started on the stadium before the 2024 season, the first major step in the renovation took place earlier this year. The press box was knocked down via a process called felling on Feb. 4. Construction will continue until the 2025 season starts. The full $700 million project will not be complete until the 2027 season begins. You can see the latest artist renderings from Penn State below:

A rendering of the completed west side of Beaver Stadium following a multi-year, $700 million renovation project. (Image courtesy of Penn State Athletics)
A rendering of the completed west side of Beaver Stadium could look like following a multi-year, $700 million renovation project. (Image courtesy of Penn State Athletics)
A rendering of what the Marzano Club could look like following a multi-year, $700 million renovation project. (Image courtesy of Penn State Athletics)
A rendering of what the Marzano Club could look like following a multi-year, $700 million renovation project. (Image courtesy of Penn State Athletics)
A rendering of what the Schuyler Family Club could look like following a multi-year, $700 million renovation project. (Image courtesy of Penn State Athletics)
A rendering of what the Schuyler Family Club could look like following a multi-year, $700 million renovation project. (Image courtesy of Penn State Athletics)
A rendering of what the Schuyler Family Club could look like following a multi-year, $700 million renovation project. (Image courtesy of Penn State Athletics)
A rendering of what the Schuyler Family Club could look like following a multi-year, $700 million renovation project. (Image courtesy of Penn State Athletics)
A rendering of the new main concourse following a multi-year, $700 million renovation project. (Image courtesy of Penn State Athletics)
A rendering of what the new main concourse could look like following a multi-year, $700 million renovation project. (Image courtesy of Penn State Athletics)
A rendering of the new upper concourse following a multi-year, $700 million renovation project. (Image courtesy of Penn State Athletics)
A rendering of what the new upper concourse could look like following a multi-year, $700 million renovation project. (Image courtesy of Penn State Athletics)
A rendering of the new upper concourse following a multi-year, $700 million renovation project. (Image courtesy of Penn State Athletics)
A rendering of what the new upper concourse could look like following a multi-year, $700 million renovation project. (Image courtesy of Penn State Athletics)
A rendering of the Schuyler Family Club following a multi-year, $700 million renovation project. (Image courtesy of Penn State Athletics)
A rendering of what the Schuyler Family Club could look like following a multi-year, $700 million renovation project. (Image courtesy of Penn State Athletics)
A rendering of the new main concourse following a multi-year, $700 million renovation project. (Image courtesy of Penn State Athletics)
A rendering of what the new main concourse could look like following a multi-year, $700 million renovation project. (Image courtesy of Penn State Athletics)
A rendering of what the Marzano Club could look like following a multi-year, $700 million renovation project. (Image courtesy of Penn State Athletics)
A rendering of what the Marzano Club could look like following a multi-year, $700 million renovation project. (Image courtesy of Penn State Athletics)

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