Come on Penn State Fans, You’re Better Than This
By: Will Vandervort January 15, 2025

It was a little comical watching how some of Penn State’s fans reacted to the news that Tom Allen was leaving Happy Valley for Death Valley.

On Tuesday, Clemson’s Compensation Committee on its Board of Trustees approved a three-year deal with Allen, making him one of the highest paid assistant coaches in college football.

Allen was without a doubt a home run hire by Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney, who was looking for someone to coordinate his defense after he parted ways officially with Wes Goodwin on Jan. 6.

When the news of Allen leaving Penn State for Clemson started to circulate on Monday, some Nitty Lion backers could not believe it. Their most common question to local radio shows and on social media was, “Why would Allen leave Penn State to coach at Clemson?”

It was definitely an elites attitude for sure.

But the jabs did not stop there.

Connor Griffin, a producer at Barstool Sports and a Penn State grad, was not happy at all, which caused him to write on X that Allen downgraded his career by coming to Clemson or that head coach James Franklin wasn’t trying to keep him around.

The upset Nittany Lion even suggested that Penn State regressed on defense this year.

Sure they did Connor.

How awful was it that the Nittany Lions ranked in the top 10 in most defensive categories? That had to be awful to watch.

The Nitty Lions’ defense ranked 8th nationally in scoring defense this season (16.5 ppg) and 7th in total defense (294.8 ypg). They also ranked 9th in rushing defense (101.9 ypg) and 7th in yards per carry allowed (3.05).

Penn State ranked fifth nationally with 44 sacks and second in tackles for loss with 119. The Nitty Lions ranked fifth in red zone defense in 2024, as well.

Of course, they are all laughable comments. Have those Penn State fans not watched college football since 2011?

The last time I checked, it’s Clemson that is ranked as the second winningest program in the sport over the last 14 seasons and not Penn State.

If I am not mistaken, Clemson has played for the national championship four times in that same span, most recently in 2019, and not Penn State.

If I am not mistaken, Clemson has won two national championships during this same time span, most recently in 2018, and not Penn State.

If I am not mistaken, Clemson has played in the College Football Playoff seven times during this same time span, and not Penn State.

If I am not mistaken, Clemson just paid Allen $1.9 million to be its new defensive coordinator and will pay him $2.1 million by the end of his three-year contract in 2027. Penn State was only paying him $1.6 million and $1.75 by the end of the contract.

Look, I am not saying Penn State is not a great football program. I know it is, and it is one that has a great tradition and a great fanbase. But so does Clemson.

In fact, you can say Clemson’s program since 2014 has been more relevant on the national scene than Penn State’s. The Tigers have won more games. They have won more championships and they have a 2-time national championship winning head coach.

So to every unhappy Penn State fan out there, stop degrading Clemson. It is clearly the better job right now or Allen would not have left Penn State to come to Clemson.

Come on Penn State fans, you’re better than this.