Penn State fans can't decide what's more painful: All of 2025 or the Pinstripe Bowl

Penn State football and Clemson both had disappointing seasons, dropping out of championship contention after starting 2025 as top five teams in the preseason. Facing each other in the Bad Boy Mowers Pinstripe Bowl at Yankee Stadium, the Nittany Lions and Tigers decided to cap off the year with equally painful performances to watch.

Arguably, the non-playoff bowl game might be the most painful game Penn State fans had to watch in 2025. Yes, that's possible.

The score at halftime was 6-3. Placekicker Ryan Barker hit a 48-yard field goal to reclaim the lead at the end of the second quarter, his longest attempt of his collegiate career. The score didn't move again until the start of the fourth quarter with yet another Barker field goal. This time, he hit a 43-yarder, extending the Nittany Lions' lead to six.

The low scoring matchup might seem indicative of strong defenses, but both teams lack key starters due to injuries and opt outs. The winter weather is an okay excuse given the 28-degree temperature fresh out of a snow storm and winter weather watch. In reality, though, it's a complete lackluster offensive performance from both teams that's contributing to the snooze-fest bowl game.

In the first half, Penn State accumulated just 128 yards of offense on 58 rushing yards and 70 passing yards. Quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer completed just 12 of 21 throws in the first two quarters.

As for Clemson and quarterback Cade Klubnik, there wasn't much more working for them either. Klubnik completed 11 of 23 passes in the first half for 115 yards. The Tigers were held to 19 rushing yards and two field goal attempts. Their first kick went far right and the second went through to tie the game 3-3 before the Nittany Lions went back on top.

The closest either team got to the end zone was Penn State's first scoring drive, which ended in a field goal.

Slowly but surely, and many drops later, the Nittany Lions finally got more than three points up on the board. Still, a fourth quarter touchdown doesn't make up for what fans had to go through for 45 minutes.

"If you feel like 2025 has gone by too quickly, tune in for Clemson Penn State," one fan posted on Twitter/X. "It'll make this the longest year of your life."

There's a lot Penn State fans argued about during the regular season, but there's one thing they all agree on: the Pinstripe Bowl vs. Clemson is nothing but painful to watch.