Though official reports have yet to be released, police are already speculating the fourth State Patty's Day may have been the worst.
As of Sunday night, an estimated 430 total reports were filed with the State College Police Department and Penn State Police throughout the weekend -- and numbers are still being tallied.
"It's as busy -- if not busier -- than last year," State College Police Department Lt. John Wilson said. "It was an extremely challenging, busy day for law enforcement."
Early Saturday morning, drunken revelers in green T-shirts stumbled through the streets of State College. As their numbers increased, so did the number of police reports.
Overall, Saturday saw 185 reports filed with State College police -- including 51 disorderly conducts, 24 alcohol violations, nine incidents of criminal mischief and five assaults. Last year, police had responded to about
60 calls by Saturday afternoon. This year, they had responded to almost 90 by the same time.
For Wilson, the synopsis of the weekend could be found in one incident.
At one point, police found a heavily intoxicated 19-year-old man hugging a signpost for support. Wilson said the man was then taken to the emergency room for treatment.
"It was a tough day," Wilson said.
In a separate incident, police said a man was charged with aggravated assault after throwing a snowball at a passing Jeep on Saturday afternoon and then punching an officer trying to arrest him near Beaver Avenue and Allen Street.
Officials from Centre County Correctional Facility said the man is not a Penn State student and is still in custody. His bail is set at $10,000, officials said.
Officers from the Pennsylvania Bureau of Liquor Control Enforcement (PBLCE) were also on duty in the borough this past weekend. On Friday, PBLCE officers observed three local establishments sell to an underage buyer and an additional two sell alcohol to visibly intoxicated people, according to a press release sent out Sunday.
On Saturday, officers observed another four establishments selling alcohol to intoxicated customers and one bar selling to an underage female, according to the release.
The names of all the establishments will be released once charges are filed, according to the press release.
But the weekend was quiet for the Lion's Den, General Manager Chris Rosengrant said -- its doors never opened.
Rosengrant, who decided to close the bar earlier this week, said he'd rather lose money than take a risk that something could go wrong.
"It probably wasn't the best day to do business," Rosengrant said. "I would rather try something than not and wait for disaster to happen."
Though Rosengrant avoided what he saw as a potential disaster by closing for the weekend, he doesn't expect other bars to be so lucky. As the weeks press on, he anticipates bars in the area closing down for citations and fines received during State Patty's weekend.
Drinking in the borough is a growing problem, and if it doesn't change soon, the repercussions may alter how State College operates, he said.
"Too many people don't say what we need, and what we need is a cooperative effort," he said. "I don't want to see my life changed. You don't want to see the whole dynamic of State College change."
Despite being disappointed and surprised by the behavior he saw this weekend, Wilson could take solace in one fact.
"No officers were severely injured," he said. "So it looks like we survived."
