CBS Sports’ Jon Rothstein reported that Penn State and Pitt would square off against each other as part of the inaugural Never Forget Tribute Classic on Saturday, Dec. 10. at 2:30 p.m. at the Prudential Center in New Jersey. Joining the Lions will be reigning National Champion Villanova, who will face Notre Dame in noon slate.

The announcement marks the busiest — and arguably most exciting — non-conference schedule in recent memory, with the Lions already set to take on perennial powerhouse Duke at the Hall of Fame Tipoff Classic at Mohegan Sun on Saturday, Nov 19. Pitt comes off a relatively turbulent offseason that saw longtime head coach Jamie Dixon, who’s been largely credited with returning the Panthers to national basketball prominence during his tenure, defect to his alma mater TCU. The Panthers finished the season with a 21-12 record that included a season sweep of Final Four participant Syracuse and a bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Panthers were knocked off in the first round by Wisconsin.

Led by senior swingman Jamel Artis, Pitt figures to remain competitive in 2016-17 with former Vanderbilt head coach Kevin Stallings at the helm. The news will surely excite Penn Staters far and wide, as the schools clash not once, but twice. The first meeting will come on the gridiron in week two of the 2016 college football regular season, the first since the two storied programs last met in 2000.

Pat Chambers’ heralded trifecta of talented freshman will be, for lack of a better term, thrown to the wolves early in having to face two ACC powers before the Big Ten regular season even begins. As they say, iron sharpens iron…