Tussey Mountain Renames ‘Utah’ Slope Ahead Of Penn State’s Rose Bowl Game

Tussey Mountain announced it will temporarily change the name of its Utah slope to “Pennsylvania” from Saturday through Monday. The move coincides with Penn State’s Rose Bowl matchup on Monday with Utah, this year’s Pac-12 champion.

“Roses are blooming in the snow at this Pennsylvania mountain,” Tussey Mountain wrote on social media. “For over five decades, Penn Staters have found the best view of Beaver Stadium and Happy Valley from the top of a slope named Utah at Tussey Mountain Ski Area. On the eve of this year’s Rose Bowl matchup between the Penn State Nittany Lions and the Utah Utes, this iconic mountain run will see a temporary name change — to Pennsylvania.

The 2023 Rose Bowl is a college football bowl game that is scheduled to be played on January 2, 2023, at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. The 109th annual Rose Bowl, the game will feature Penn State from the Big Ten Conference and Utah from the Pac-12 Conference. The game is scheduled to begin at 2:00 p.m. PST and will air on ESPN and ESPN Radio.[3] It will be one of the 2022–23 bowl games concluding the 2022 FBS football season. Sponsored by Prudential Financial, the game is officially known as the Rose Bowl Game presented by Prudential.

Due to the expansion of the College Football Playoff this game is expected to be the final "traditional" Rose Bowl Game. In 2024, the game will be a national semifinal while in 2025 and 2026 the game will be a national quarterfinal. While it is possible the quarterfinal/semifinal games could still feature matchups between Big Ten and Pac-12 teams, historic conference tie-ins are not used in the current playoff format.

Induction ceremonies to the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame will be held before the game honoring three-time Rose Bowl Game head coach Hugo Bezdek (1884–1952), recently retired Rose Bowl Stadium CEO Darryl Dunn, 1977 Rose Bowl Game MVP Vince Evans (USC), and 1987 All-American Lorenzo White (Michigan State).

Ski lifts will operate until 5 p.m. on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day. They’ll stay open until 9 p.m. on Jan. 2 for those who hope to ski as the Nittany Lions kick off in the Rose Bowl. Those who hope to catch the game at Tussey Mountain are encouraged to swing by the resort’s Tussey Bär and Kitchen.

Tussey Mountain was originally operated as a public ski area under the name of Skimont during the 1960’s. After sitting idle for a few years, the mountain was re-opened as a private club in the mid 1970’s under the name Bald Knob Ski Club.

In 1981-82 the mountain was reorganized and opened again publicly as Tussey Mountain Ski Area, a name now synonymous with quality skiing to area residents. Since then the mountain has grown both in size and sophistication of operation.

Today, Tussey Mountain has skiing on 50 acres with 3 ski and snowboard lifts and 1 snowtube lift. A snowmaking system covers 90% of our skiable terrain, as does  slope lighting. Instruction is offered through a PSIA member Snowsports School, first-aid services through a NSP member Ski Patrol, a complete Rental Shop, on-site Ski Shop, as well as well-organized junior racing programs.

Kickoff for the 2023 Rose Bowl is set for 5 p.m. EST on ESPN. Play-by-play announcer Chris Fowler, color analyst Kirk Herbstreit and sideline reporter Holly Rowe will get the call as the Nittany Lions and Utes clash.