For years, the tunnel leading Penn State players onto the field at Beaver Stadium was branded with James Franklin’s “1-0” mantra, a phrase that came to define more than a decade of Nittany Lion football.
After Franklin’s firing last October, one question surrounding Matt Campbell’s arrival was what identity he would put on his program.
The answer is something very familiar.
“Success With Honor.”
The phrase that defined Penn State football for decades now greets players inside the Beaver Stadium tunnel, another unmistakable connection between Campbell’s program and Penn State’s past under Joe Paterno.
Paterno coached the Nittany Lions for 46 seasons and remains the winningest head coach in major college football history with 409 victories.
The tunnel change is hardly happening in isolation.
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.Penn State has made a noticeable effort to reintroduce Paterno’s legacy around the football program. This week, the university opened the Paterno Family Experience Room inside Beaver Stadium, which includes a full replica of Paterno’s former office.
There is another, more subtle tribute inside the stadium.
Section 409, matching Paterno’s career win total, stands out as the only section number highlighted in white, while the surrounding sections are displayed in blue.
Taken together, the changes represent a significant shift in how Penn State is publicly embracing the history of the coach who built the program into a national power.
And with each new tribute, one question becomes increasingly difficult to ignore:
Is the statue next?
