It’s easy to recognize Penn State hockey’s No. 1 fan

Rich Seifert is easy to find at Penn State hockey games.

He’s also easy to spot Tuesday nights for the Penn State Coaches Show call-in radio program.

So easy to pick out, in fact, that when people run into him elsewhere, they are disappointed he’s not sporting his trademark look.

Fans at Pegula Ice Arena know him as the Blue Hair Guy.

He sits near the top of section 121, and a couple of times a game he stands up and bellows toward the “Roar Zone” student section a “We are ...!” and draws an immediate response. He loves the sport of hockey in general and he definitely loves Penn State hockey.

The Nittany Lion program loves him right back.

The native New Yorker started cheering for the Rangers in 1965, and soon after he moved to State College in 1990, a friend told him about the Icers club program. He was hooked right away.

When it was announced the university would be elevating the program to Division I, he was a little sad the Icers legacy would be lessened, with the team called the Nittany Lions — he still catches himself calling them the Icers now and then — but he was also excited to see big-time college hockey coming to town. He went to games, like he did before, for the first varsity season at the old Greenberg Ice Pavilion.

Then, for the opener at the new arena in the fall of 2013, he wanted to mark the special occasion in style and got a suggestion from a friend who styles hair. Using blue chalk he colored his long, gray locks.

“That first game I wanted to do something,” Seifert said. “It was a big hit right from Game 1.”

Washing all the chalk out of his hair was a problem, especially for clothing and his pillow case.

Eventually they found a blue mousse that washes out much easier.

The shoulder-length hair in its distinctive hue, combined with a bushy horseshoe mustache and a Penn State hockey jersey makes him unmistakable.

And when he’s encountered by fans elsewhere, he draws some disappointment.

“It happens quite a bit,” Seifert said. “On weekends at the grocery store, ‘Oh, your hair’s not blue.’ (He replies) ‘They’re away this weekend.’ Then they want to know about the hair.”

Seifert also works at Mercedes-Benz of State College. At first management balked at colored hair on a work day. But as Penn State hockey fans themselves, they soon relented, and customers now expect to see him there showing his support for the Nittany Lions.

Not long after opening night at Pegula Ice Arena, Seifert appeared on the video screen. Each home game two fans are shown for a popular vote for the “fan of the game” and those on hand roared their approval of Seifert. A member of the marketing department found Seifert and asked if he was interested in helping with team promotions.

Now, he has pre-taped videos that appear on the scoreboard, imploring the fans to make noise.

“Tremendous individual and ambassador for Penn State hockey,” Mike Wierzbicki, marketing manager for Penn State Intercollegiate Athletics, said in an email.

The popularity is not just limited to the fans. He knows team members and coaches. One day, after shooting a video at the arena, he dropped by head coach Guy Gadowsky’s office. The coach didn’t have time to talk, so he sent Seifert down the hall to a team meeting about to begin.

With clipboard in hand, he walked into the room and gave his instructions to each position group.

“Was that a ball,” Seifert said. “The team just roared.”

With a “white-Out” set for a game against Michigan last month, he even asked the coaches and players if he should change his hair color for the night. They were unanimous: Keep it blue.

Team members stop and talk to him when they meet on the street, and at a game last season he even got a thank-you from the parents of Patrick Koudys, the team’s captain last year.

Seifert served in the Army for three years in the late 1960s, spending a year in Vietnam, and is proud of his service for his country.

Now he brings smiles and joy to a team and its fans in a way he could not have imagined the first time those long gray strands changed color.

“I really didn’t plan on doing this for three years,” Seifert said. “I thought it was going to be a one-shot deal. The way it caught on with the team and everything, I’ve got to keep on doing it.”

This story was originally published February 16, 2016 at 10:59 PM with the headline "It’s easy to recognize Penn State hockey’s No. 1 fan."