NEW YORK – Penn State ended its disappointing season in a very satisfying way Saturday at Yankee Stadium.
Ethan Grunkemeyer passed for two touchdowns, Ryan Barker kicked three field goals and the defense dominated Clemson in the Nittany Lions’ 22-10 victory in the Pinstripe Bowl.
Penn State (7-6) won despite playing without 11 regulars who opted out and with a makeshift offensive line that opened holes for Quinton Martin Jr. and protected Grunkemeyer well.
Grunkemeyer completed 23-of-34 passes for 262 yards without a turnover, Martin had 101 rushing yards with his first 20 carries of the season and Trebor Pena had five receptions for 100 yards, including a 73-yard touchdown.
Senior end Dani Dennis-Sutton chose to play, registered two sacks and helped the Lions hold the Tigers to 236 total yards. Safety Vaboue Toure sealed it when he sacked Cade Klubnik with 2:29 left.
That came after Grunkemeyer tossed an 11-yard touchdown pass to tight end Andrew Rappleyea that made it 22-10 with 4:56 left.
Klubnik finished 22-for-39 for 193 yards for Clemson, which had just 35 rushing yards.
Penn State dominated the third quarter with two long drives. Lions coach Terry Smith decided to go for it on fourth-and-4 from the Clemson 28, but Devonte Ross dropped a pass with blockers in front of him.
After the Tigers punted, Penn State methodically moved down the field to the Clemson 25 as the third quarter ended. Barker then drilled a 43-yard field goal to make it 9-3 on the first play of the fourth.
The Lions forced a three and out before Grunkemeyer threaded a pass through two defenders to Pena, who outran the secondary to the end zone with 12:51 to go.
Clemson answered with a 65-yard drive after Gabe Nwosu hit a kickoff out of bounds. Adam Randall finished it with a 2-yard run to make it 15-10 with 8:47 left.
Special teams were the difference in the first half.
Barker’s two field goals, including a 48-yarder as time expired, put Penn State on top 6-3 at the break. He made a 22-yarder in the first quarter after Jack Smith tried a pass on a fake punt that was badly thrown on Clemson’s first series.
The Lions took over at the Tigers’ 32 and picked up two first downs, the second one at the Clemson 4. But on third-and-goal from the 2, Corey Smith was thrown for a 3-yard loss by Ronan Hanafin. Barker then drilled a short kick to make it 3-0.
Penn State had a 30-yard completion to Rappleyea wiped out by an illegal shift penalty later in the first quarter.
Early in the second, Rappleyea slipped after catching a pass on fourth-and-4 at the Clemson 46, but the Tigers were forced to punt after Dennis-Sutton’s third-down sack.
Clemson threatened to score later in the second after a 44-yard pass from Klubnik to T.J. Moore to Penn State’s 15. Three defensive backs made plays on the next three downs, Daryus Dixson and Audavion Collins with pass breakups and Dejuan Lane with a stop for no gain.
Nolan Hauser, though, pushed a 33-yard field goal try to the right.
Hauser got another chance despite a sack by Jaylen Harvey and drilled a 48-yarder to tie it 3-3 with 56 seconds to go in the half.
Behind Grunkemeyer’s passing and a 14-yard run by Martin, the Lions drove to the Clemson 31. From there, Barker nailed a field goal to make it 6-3.
