Will Penn State students be out in force for last two games?

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. - There are only two more games in which Mike Mauti and Matt McGloin will wear a Penn State uniform. There are only two more games for rookie coach Bill O'Brien to prove, despite adversity, his Nittany Lions (6-4, 4-2 Big Ten) don't want to quit.

There will be no Big Ten title game, no bowl game, nothing until April's Blue and White scrimmage. But in this football-crazed town, is it possible that students don't care?

Sanctioned Penn State closes out its 2012 campaign with Indiana on Saturday then Wisconsin on Nov. 24. It's the first time since 2008 that the Lions will end the regular season with back-to-back games at Beaver Stadium.

It's a nice way to go out for Penn State's senior class, but there's a glitch: Both games fall over the university's Thanksgiving break. And most Penn State students - who do not have a fall break like many other universities - are planning on packing up early and relaxing at home for the week.

"Out of my group of eight close friends, only two are staying for the games," said junior Sari Goldstein, a season-ticket holder. "And one is only sticking around because it's her birthday and [she] wanted to celebrate here."

On Penn State's student ticket exchange, tickets for Indiana were going for as low as $11. Only 32 tents are registered to camp out at Nittanyville this week, compared to a record-high 144 tents for the Ohio State game.

Penn State has made concerted efforts to accommodate students who want to attend the games. Dorms will stay open until Sunday morning and open again Friday evening, an extra day on each end of the week.

"We've done this before," said university spokeswoman Jill Shockey, who said the decision was made by several administrators. She did not know if O'Brien had any input on the decision but added, "If he did, that doesn't sound like normal procedure."

Penn State has struggled with attendance this season. Only one game (against undefeated Ohio State) was a sellout. Prior to that, Beaver Stadium - with a capacity of 106,000-plus - averaged just 96,357 fans per game.

O'Brien has made several passionate pleas to persuade students to come as an act of respect for what he calls "one of the greatest senior classes in the history of college football."

"I'm not going to beg anybody to come to the game," O'Brien said. "But this is a football team led by a senior class that has had the choice . . . whether to stay at Penn State or to leave Penn State. And they chose to stay. So as fans, as students, can we not choose to support them in their last two games?"