The Penn State baseball program is hoping that beer isn't the only thing that has been bringing fans to the new Medlar Field at Lubrano Park.

Beer won't be served at Nittany Lions baseball games come springtime, but Lions coach Robbie Wine said that the program will continue to work with Spikes management to amplify the atmosphere that has made the new stadium such an attractive environment for fans.

"It's not just a stadium. You have luxury boxes, you have a kid's zone, you have a deck, a picnic area, you have bleachers -- so if you're drawing 1,000 or 2,000, this place is still going to look energetic and busy," Wine said.

Wine is optimistic that the Spikes ownership group, Curve Baseball LP, will be able to provide entertainment before, after and during games to cater to the student life as well as to locals.

While Curve Baseball LP will continue to run the activities and concessions, Spikes general manager Rick Janac said that there may need to be modifications to some of the promotions because collegiate sports typically have lower levels of commercialism involved in the game than professional sports.

"I think we're going to work to find the balance of what we can add to the game and make it fun and exciting, and make students and the community come out to support the team and what is too much for a collegiate game," Janac said.

Ticket and food prices have not yet been determined. Wine said he hoped students and faculty would still receive free admission but the university would ultimately make the decision.

Janac said the food selection at the stadium, which ranges from fries and nachos to entrées from Quaker Steak and Lube will still be available during the spring college season.

Walking around the stadium, Spikes spectators may have noticed televisions throughout the stadium showing a live feed of the games. Wine said he hopes that will continue into the spring season and said they are even considering having campus, and even possibly local broadcasts.

"In the building of this, they wired this thing so ESPN could come in and plug in and everything is set up to be broadcast," Wine said.

Wine also said with the Big Ten Channel launching next August, he expects they will also take advantage of the broadcast capability.

Even if the team can't come to the public on the air, Wine said he will try to make the players more available to the community in other ways. Wine was inspired after watching the success of events held by the Spikes with autograph sessions that allowed the fans to meet the minor league baseball players.

"That's one of my goals for this team, I want them to get out and be seen more," Wine said. "I want to get more people in the stands and get the students involved, and I want them to come out and have a blast out here."

Wine expects the home opener against Pittsburgh to have a huge draw and said that they purposefully scheduled more mid-week evening games to make it easier for fans to attend games on a regular basis.

Pitching coach Jason Bell may have said it best through pointing out that from each tiny detail to the grand scheme, Medlar Field was created to exceed the expectations of any fans or players who entered.

"That's what it is, it's just the little things that make it special. It makes you look forward to coming back, it's the experience," Bell said. "Everybody raves about it, everybody talks about it, everybody wants to come back.

"I feel like a kid in a candy store every time I get to come down here and look at this field that we get to play on."