Indiana defensive lineman Mikail Kamara (6) tackles Penn State running back Kaytron Allen (13) during the fourth quarter of an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Nov. 8, 2025, in State College, Pa. (AP Photo/Barry Reeger)

Just end this already!

Get it over with. No more torture.

This has been, as far as I can tell, the most disappointing season in Penn State football history. Who out there even wants to see this debacle continue in a bowl game?

The Lions need to get their house in order in December, not get ready to play in a meaningless bowl game.

And yes, no matter how much you might believe otherwise as a longtime PSU fan, bowl games have become meaningless in this new era of college football.

If you’re not in the playoff, you’re going to be playing in a bowl game that pretty much nobody cares about. Including many of the players.

Let’s say Penn State were to eke out a 6-6 record and go to a bowl game. I’d put the over/under at the number of players opting out of that game at around 15. It could even be double that.

Kaytron Allen and Nicholas Singleton would be foolish to play in a meaningless bowl game. Any running back would be foolish to subject his body to that.

Linebackers. Safeties. Wide receivers. Any player that could be subject to taking or delivering big hits doesn’t really have any business risking his health and future for an awful bowl game.

Whatever team lines up wearing the Penn State uniform in such a bowl this season wouldn’t come close to resembling the team we’re seeing week to week now.

Despite all of those problems, I could still see some good reasons for Penn State to play in a bowl game if it finishes 6-6 — in some years.

But not this year.

The whole program is going to be in chaos here in a few weeks. While everyone waits to see who will be the new head coach, you’d have to think that every player on the team is trying to figure out if he wants to stay at Penn State.

These are business decisions. Big business decisions in the world of million-dollar NIL deals.

The players don’t need to be giving two weeks’ notice about leaving, which is essentially what they’d be doing going bowling. If they’re ready to check out mentally when the regular season ends, so be it. Let ’em go.

Many Penn State fans are older and grew up hearing all about how bowl games were extremely important. They offered opportunities for Joe Paterno to prove that his often-overlooked Eastern power was just as good as any team in the country.

That bygone era doesn’t exist anymore. Bowl games don’t determine which team is better or which conference is better. They determine which team even cares about playing, and it’s obvious watching many of the games that neither team cares all that much.

So, please, let this season die of natural causes when the regular season ends. Go out and finalize hiring a new coach and let him begin the process of resurrecting the program after this historically miserable season.

Don’t torture the fans any longer by sending some garbage team of backups out to play in some garbage bowl game against some garbage opponent.

Just get it over with.

Cory Giger hosts the new Blue & White Wrapup show following each Penn State game this season on 96.9 and 100.7 FM.