UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State fans flocking to events this past fall have again boosted the Nittany Lions into the nation’s premier program in top 10 home attendance averages.
During the fall sports season, four Penn State teams ranked in the top 10 in average home attendance, the most of any school nationally. Nine schools were tied for second with two teams in the top 10.
The Penn State field hockey, football, women’s soccer and women’s volleyball teams all ranked in the top 10 in average home attendance last fall, with field hockey and football ranked No. 2, according to the NCAA.
Including men’s soccer, the Penn State fall squads in the survey ranked in the top 5 in average home attendance among Big Ten institutions, with field hockey and women’s soccer leading the conference. Football was No. 2, with men’s soccer and women’s volleyball ranked fourth in the conference.
Additionally, Penn State is No. 2 nationally in wrestling home attendance with an average of 6,551 after five home dual meets. The men’s hockey team is No. 4 in home attendance with an average of 6,078, and the women’s hockey team ranks 13th nationally in average home attendance.
“The Penn State community is one of the most supportive in all of college athletics,” said Chris Grosse, assistant athletic director for marketing. “The passion that our students, alumni and fan base show helps our student-athletes compete at the highest levels of their sport. We greatly appreciate the devotion of the Penn State community in supporting the Nittany Lion student-athletes and making State College one of the toughest places to play for visiting teams.”
Penn State 2018 Fall Sports Average Home Attendance
Sport Avg. Attendance National Rank Conference Rank
Field Hockey 559 2 1
Football 105,485 2 2
Men’s Soccer 1,086 26 4
Women’s Soccer 1,598 6 1
Women’s Volleyball 3,346 7 4
*Attendance averages through end of the regular season for fall sports teams
Under the leadership of Director of Athletics Sandy Barbour, Penn State has one of the nation’s most comprehensive and successful athletic programs, featuring 800 student-athletes across 31 varsity programs (16 men’s, 15 women’s). Penn State student-athletes have posted an NCAA Graduation Success Rate (GSR) of 90 percent the past two years, which ties the Nittany Lions’ all-time high. Eight teams earned a 100 percent graduation rate in the 2018 NCAA Graduation Rates Report.
The Nittany Lions rank No. 4 among all Division I schools with 204 CoSIDA Academic All-Americans all-time, including women’s soccer student-athletes Kerry Abello and Emily Ogle and football student-athlete Blake Gillikin during the fall semester.
Penn State’s 50 NCAA championships all-time (78 national championships overall) rank No. 5 among all NCAA Division I programs and are the highest total of any college or university east of the Mississippi River. Penn State’s 31 NCAA titles since 1992-93, including a third consecutive NCAA Wrestling Championship, lead all Big Ten Conference institutions. The Nittany Lions have won 108 Big Ten championships or tournament titles since capturing their first crown in 1992-93.