Maryland vs Penn State 2026: Game Day & Transportation Guide

Maryland hosts Penn State on Saturday, November 28, 2026 at SECU Stadium in College Park, MD — the regular-season finale for the Terrapins and the 49th all-time meeting between the programs. Kickoff time has not yet been announced. Penn State leads the all-time series 44-3-1, but Maryland's 2020 upset win in State College proved the Terps can compete. Here is everything you need to plan your game day — parking, Metro, tailgating, and how to get a group to College Park without the headache.

Game Details

Kickoff times for Big Ten games are typically announced 6 to 12 days before the game. For a rivalry finale against Penn State, expect a marquee time slot. The programs compete aggressively for recruits throughout the Baltimore-Washington-Philadelphia corridor, and the rivalry has run annually since Maryland joined the Big Ten in 2014. The full 2026 Maryland schedule is on the official athletics site.

How to Get to SECU Stadium

SECU Stadium sits on the University of Maryland campus — about 9 miles northeast of downtown DC and 30 miles south of Baltimore.

By Metro

The College Park–University of Maryland station on the Green and Yellow lines is directly on campus. The stadium is a 15- to 20-minute walk. On game days, the university runs a free Quickbus (Shuttle-UM) with three loops: North Shuttle (Regents Drive Garage), South Shuttle (Green/Yellow lots and downtown College Park), and College Park Metro Shuttle (directly from the station). Metro parking is free on weekends.

By Car

Campus access is off US Route 1. Parking is distributed across multiple zones — Stadium Drive Garage ($3/hr), Terrapin Trail Garage, Regents Drive Garage, and numerous surface lots. Some require Terrapin Club permits; others are public. From Baltimore (~30 mi): I-95 S to I-495, Exit 25 (US-1 S), about 35 to 50 minutes. From DC (~9 mi): US-1 N or Metro. From Annapolis (~30 mi): US-50 W to I-495, Exit 25. Check the UMD football parking page for the current game-day map.

Tailgating at SECU Stadium

Lots open six hours before kickoff. Tailgating is limited to the number of spaces for which you hold a permit — no open-flame grilling in garages. For the Penn State finale on a late-November Saturday, expect a full house in the lots. The Mighty Sound of Maryland marching band's pregame march through the lots is one of the best traditions in the Big Ten. Late November temperatures in College Park run in the mid-40s for highs with lows in the low 30s — dress in layers.

Why Groups Choose One Vehicle Over Multiple Cars

SECU Stadium distributes parking across a half-dozen zones. If your party of 6 or 8 drives separately, you might end up in three different lots. That means three separate tailgate setups, three post-game car searches, and no unified game-day experience. A single vehicle — an Executive Sprinter van or a limo bus — picks the whole group up together, drops you at the stadium, and waits while you tailgate and watch the game.

This matters especially for the Penn State game because of the visiting fan factor. Nittany Lions fans travel in enormous numbers, amplifying the usual parking pressure. Getting in and out of College Park in a private vehicle with a professional driver bypasses all of it. For the same campus logistics applied to a different matchup, see the Maryland vs Wisconsin Military Appreciation game two weeks earlier.

Frequently Asked Questions