Dabo Swinney raises doubts over Clemson’s direction with ugly Pinstripe Bowl loss

The Clemson Tigers capped a disappointing 2025 season with an ugly 22-10 loss to the Penn State Nittany Lions in the Pinstripe Bowl, raising fresh doubts over the program’s direction under longtime head coach Dabo Swinney. Clemson (7-6) looked ill-prepared for the power conference tilt, a game started by senior quarterback Cade Klubnik. Penn State (7-6), which fired former head coach James Franklin earlier this season, put together a much more impressive and complete performance under interim coach Terry Smith. The Nittany Lions out-gained the Tigers 397-236. Their defense had two more sacks and three more pass breakups than Clemson’s in 11 fewer plays. Clemson, the Associated Press preseason No. 4 team in the country, had more three-and-outs (three) than scoring drives (two) against Penn State, which similarly underperformed expectations after entering the season ranked No. 2. Unlike the Nittany Lions, the Tigers are content on maintaining the status quo, with Swinney set to return for a 19th season in 2026Read More