Penn State AD Patrick Kraft reasserts his disgust with Big Ten scheduling model

Penn State athletic director Patrick Kraft took issue with the Big Ten after it released its 2023 football schedule Wednesday. Discovering that the Nittany Lions were scheduled to begin conference play on the road for the eighth straight season, Kraft let his displeasure be known.

“It is incredibly frustrating and disappointing Penn State will be starting our Big Ten football slate next year on the road for the eighth straight season and for the 13th the in the last 14 years,” he said according to Rich Scarcella of the Reading Eagle. “…When I arrived on campus I shared with the conference staff my concerns and repeatedly referenced their failure to address this issue in the past. I have been in communication with Commissioner Warren and I am confident this issue will be addressed.”

Penn State will kick off Big Ten play next season against Illinois on Sept. 16 in Champaign. This season the Nittany Lions opened conference play against Purdue on the road, a game they won 35-31. Overall, they are 5-2 in their conference openers over the past seven seasons on the road.

But even with that success, Penn State would like the opportunity to open at home for its fans. As Kraft mentioned, the league has been made aware of the concerns and hopefully will listen in future seasons.

Kraft took over as the Penn State athletic director in April, and fixing the lack of home conference openers has been one of his top priorities. This isn’t the first time Kraft has spoken out about the Big Ten’s scheduling model and putting Penn State on the road to start the year. He did so at the league’s media days in July, saying he spoke with the league about making changes to the “unacceptable” process.

“It stinks,” Kraft said, via Brett McMurphy. “I called the conference office and said this is unacceptable. This shouldn’t happen at Penn State.”

See below for Penn State’s full schedule for the 2023 season.

Penn State football full 2023 schedule

9/2 – West Virginia

9/9 – Delaware

9/16 – at Illinois

9/23 – Iowa

9/30 – at Northewestern

10/7 – BYE

10/14 – UMass

10/21 – at Ohio State

10/28 – Indiana

11/4 – at Maryland

11/11 – Michigan

11/18 – Rutgers

11/25 – at Michigan State