***Published in State of the Valley, Penn State Lehigh Valley's student newspaper***
The immense
capacity of Beaver Stadium. The confines of a pavilion at new student
orientation. The mind of a Nittany Lion alumnus as he thinks back to his glory
days. What do these three localities have in common? They all have joined in on
Penn State University’s beloved chant: “We Are Penn State!”
Despite the
popularity it garners from countless athletic spectators, peppy Lion
ambassadors, and prideful students past and present, the cheer brings up a few
queries. What makes it so crowd-pleasing? What does it mean? And where did it
come from?
Several teachers
shared their insight on what they believe is a perfectly suitable chant. “The
chant is very meaningful to me, particularly since we are at such a small
branch of Penn State,” explains English professor Dr. Margaret Christian. “I
love our local campus with its cozy feeling, but I also love being part of a
huge, prestigious university—the recognition that I see in my colleagues’ eyes
when I go to academic conferences and say, ‘I teach at Penn State.’ Even at the Lehigh Valley campus, WE
are Penn State.”
Business
professor Michael Krajsa believes Penn State’s renowned huzzah is not only
unifying, but useful: “From a strategy and marketing perspective, our chant is
powerful, priceless, and poetic. It speaks to the essence of Penn State’s ‘brand
identity’ establishing an explosive verbal relationship between the customers
who exclaim both ‘we are’ and our brand, ‘Penn State.’”
However, a
handful of freshmen do not believe the slogan is all that special. Salma
El-Ashry thought, “For a university so big and lively, you'd expect something
with a little more pizzazz than just simply stating what university we belong
to.” Kyle Niemkiewicz considered it to be, “…lame. ‘We Are Penn State.’ What
are you going to do about it? Who cares? It fails.” “We need something more
fierce,” commented Marquita Broxton.
But whether it
is considered lame or powerful, meaningful or non-fierce, “We Are Penn State!”
has always been the prominent rally cry ever since its creation six decades ago.
The 1947-1948 Nittany
Lion varsity football team, also known as the “Men of ’47,” was one of the
first teams to accept African-American football players in a time of nationally
widespread racial segregation. The team had accomplished a perfect 9-0 season
and was ranked as the fourth-best team in America. But despite such an
impressive feat, the NCAA had considered disallowing the Nittany Lions from
playing in a bowl game.
Eventually, an
invitation to the Cotton Bowl against Southern Methodist University in Dallas,
Texas was bestowed upon Penn State. Unfortunately, negativity arose once again
when the NCAA started conceiving more ideas. This time, officials wanted to
have a meeting to discuss whether the African-American Nittany Lions should
travel to Dallas and play amidst heavy protesting at SMU. And when the Caucasian
All-American offensive lineman Steve Suhey was asked by the press about this
matter, his response was simple: “We Are Penn State. There will be no
meetings.”
The 1948 Cotton
Bowl had no winner as it ended in a 13-13 tie. But the Men of ‘47’s undefeated
record remained intact when halfback Wally Triplett, Penn State’s first black
varsity starter, scored the game-tying and game-saving touchdown.
In 2001,
university president Graham Spanier gave a speech at Encampment, a retreat for
Penn State students and faculty to discuss with the president about issues
regarding the university. He mentioned the motto: “‘We Are Penn State’ embraces
our differences and unites us as a community despite those differences. ‘We Are
Penn State’ is a proclamation of unity, backed by our resolve to come together
for a common purpose.”