Pitt-Penn State game draws largest crowd for sporting event in Pittsburgh
They came early and stayed late — nearly 70,000 of them.
Hours before the Pitt and Penn State football teams faced off at noon Saturday at Heinz Field, fans renewed an old rivalry in a friendly and, at times, not-so-friendly fashion.
The first tailgaters arrived at 5:15 a.m., and cars had lined up for parking spots by 7, according to an ALCO lot operator for the North Shore's D.L. Clark Building.
Out came coolers, grills, cigars, beanbag-toss sets, tables for drinking games and increasingly raucous chants as fans prepared for the first game between the two teams in 16 years.
The first Pitt students arrived at Heinz Field on Friday, choosing to camp out overnight to make sure they got choice seats in the general admission student section.
Maria Baldonieri, 22, who graduated from Penn State in May, traveled to Pittsburgh from her new home in Baltimore for the game — and, she added, to see her parents. Baldonieri said she was up by 6 a.m. and tailgating by 7:15.
“You have to get the good tailgating spot; it's football, and you have to start drinking,” she said.
Such was the thought process of many, as tens of thousands of Panther and Nittany Lion fans poured onto the North Shore, with the final count in Heinz Field landing at 69,983 — the largest crowd to ever watch a sporting event in Pittsburgh.
Jeff Balzer, 54, of Wexford said the size of the crowds showed the persistent intensity of the rivalry.
Balzer, who said he earned undergraduate, master's and doctorate degrees from Pitt, compared the crowd to those that gather in the open fields outside Penn State's Beaver Stadium, which seats about 107,000. Heinz Field seats about 65,000 and is surrounded by buildings.
“For Pitt fans, this will be the biggest tailgate they've seen in a long, long time,” he said.
The game lived up to the hype: With just over a minute left to play, Pitt cornerback Ryan Lewis intercepted Penn State quarterback Trace McSorely in the end zone, allowing the Panthers to hold on for a 42-39 victory.
“I really think it's great,” Ed Fleming said of the renewed rivalry. Clad in Pitt gear, he said he bought Pitt season tickets this year solely to secure a spot at Saturday's game.
“I was at the last one,” he said after the game. “It's just great.”
Rival fans (mostly) cordial
University buses shuttled students from Pitt's campus in Oakland to and from the stadium, and crowds remained small and tame in the university neighborhood.
On the North Shore, some crowds turned their pre-game tailgate into a post-game tailgate as they flowed out of the stadium and back to their lawn chairs and coolers.
Penn State fan Jan Engle didn't let the foiled comeback and subsequent loss dampen her spirits.
“They held on,” she said. “They never gave up, and they never gave in.”
Engle and her friend, Sally Price, drove in from Factoryville, Wyoming County. It was Price's first time to Pittsburgh.
“They never quit playing — they played with heart,” she said. “It's a young team. I'm very, very proud of them.”
Price and Engle high-fived Pitt and fellow Penn State fans streaming into the parking lots after the game. Most returned the high-fives jovially, but some Pitt fans — and even some Penn State fans — were less than polite.
“Those were the first mean people,” Engle said of a man in Penn State gear who scoffed at her “good game” chant.
Before the game, Pitt fans heckled PSU fans with “Joe knew” chants, referring to longtime Nittany Lion coach Joe Paterno's alleged knowledge of former assistant Jerry Sandusky's sex crimes against children. Dozens of Pitt fans were seen wearing shirts with the same slogan.
Pitt fan Anthony Teti, 61, of McKeesport said the scandal, which resulted in Sandusky's conviction on 45 counts, will always be a part of the rivalry.
The sea of fans, however, was mostly amiable.
The interval since the last game 16 years ago should have cooled any hostility, said Justin Reasy, 34, of Conshohocken.
“I think fans are just expecting a good game; they're here to have a good time,” Reasy said. “It's an interstate rivalry renewed.”
Wes Venteicher is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 412-380-5676 or wventeicher@tribweb.com. Editor Jim Wilhelm, staff writer Megan Guza and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
