Do you want to see Penn State play on a neutral field?

Penn State has a history of neutral site games, and big money can be made by playing them today. Should Penn State dabble in the neutral field craze?

In 1978, Penn State played in the very first Kickoff Classic in the old Giants Stadium. It was a crushing defeat at the hands of Nebraska, with Turner Gill and the Huskers ambushing the defending national champion and top-ranked Nittany Lions 44-6. The game was a historic one, as it was the first time a college football game had been played in August. The Kickoff Classic had a very good run before playing its last game in 2002, with Notre Dame and Maryland packing Giants Stadium one last time.

Penn State is by no means a stranger to the concept of playing a neutral site game. In addition to the four trips to the old Kickoff Classic, Penn State faced Syracuse in the MetLife Stadium to open the 2012 season. Last year the Nittany Lions traveled across the Atlantic Ocean to open the 2014 season against defending American Athletic Conference and Fiesta Bowl champion UCF. Over the years there have been some other games played  on a  neutral field, like playing Indiana in FedEx Field (home of the Washington Redskins) or the old RCA Dome in Indianapolis. This season Penn State will face Maryland in Baltimore’s M&T Bank Stadium (home of the Baltimore Ravens). Each of those games were home games for Penn State’s opponent being moved to a different venue to sell more tickets. Penn State did not lose a home game in any of those deals.

Today’s game sees plenty of big games being stage don neutral fields in the early weeks of the college football season, but Penn State has not joined in the fun just yet. It is easy to understand why Penn State would be somewhat reluctant to play on a neutral field, and it has nothing to do with the competitiveness on the field. Penn State figures to rake in plenty of money by playing games at home, which is why for years Penn State has tried to secure no fewer than seven home game son the schedule each fall. It is simple math really. There are not many venues that make losing a home game with a potential attendance surpassing 100,000 on a Saturday very attractive from a financial standpoint. Sure, there are some massive checks being written to schools that pack up everything for a single game in Arlington or Atlanta, and there is a tremendous amount of exposure that typically comes with those games, but not Penn State plays in the second-largest football stadium in the country. That is a lot of money to be made on tickets right at home with a fraction of the financial risk and hardship.

Will there be a day when Penn State once again takes to a neutral field for a football game? Yeah, probably. But when?

The Cowboys Classic in AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas is currently the biggest draw for neutral site game sat the start of the season. It has paired up top 25 programs in each season since first being played in 2009, and each team takes away a massive payday as a reward, win or lose. Big Ten teams have been invited on occasion, with Michigan getting stomped by Alabama in 2012 and Wisconsin preparing to open the 2015 season against the Crimson Tide on that same field later this year. Michigan will be back to play Florida in 2017, but no other Big Ten team is signed up through the 2019 game (Oregon vs. Auburn was recently announced). By contract, Alabama is also locked into the 2020 game. Could Penn State end up being the opponent?

What about the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game? History would suggest that is a long shot as well. Since first being played in 2008, no Big Ten team has been invited to play in the game in Atlanta. This game is traditionally played between teams from the ACC and SEC, which makes sense given the geography in play, although Boise State has made two appearances and West Virginia has made one. Penn State does historically travel well, and it would be a bowl-like atmosphere. Penn State vs. Tennessee or Georgia or Clemson or Georgia Tech? It sounds fun, does it not?

The first thing that should be reviewed is Penn State’s future non-conference scheduling. Starting in 2016 the Big Ten will move to a nine-game conference schedule, leaving just three non-conference slots to fill every season. This is also when the four-game set with Pittsburgh will commence, in Pittsburgh. Penn State’s non-conference schedule is booked through the 2018 season, and the Nittany Lions are scheduled to play at Virginia Tech in 2020. So if you are starting to dream about Alabama vs. Penn State in the 2020 Cowboys Classic, forget about it. No payday will be sizable enough to sway Penn State to playing a second non-conference game away from Beaver Stadium.

Of course, playing a game on a neutral field these days means selling a little bit of your program’s soul and heart in order to get paid. It would be silly to suggest Penn State is not above that, as much as you may wish to fight it. It would be far more fun to experience Penn State vs. an ACC or SEC opponent in the home stadium of that program. Penn State will get to play at Pittsburgh, at Virginia Tech and at West Virginia in upcoming seasons, and that will be great. Perhaps there will be others to come. If the opportunity to play on a neutral field may come along at some point a swell, and there would be plenty of benefits to accepting any such offer. Would you be OK with that?

You can leave your responses and reaction in the comment section below, or on the somewhat informal Facebook poll going on right now.

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