The 14^th ranked, 9-2 Clemson Tigers of Head Coach Danny Ford met the 20^th ranked, 8-3 Penn State Nittany Lions with coach Joe Paterno.  Clemson handed Paterno his largest ever bowl defeat; gaining 499 total yards in a 35-10 victory to claim The Belt.  The Nittany Lions played without leading rusher RB Blair Thomas who had injured his knee in practice early December.  Tigers’ QB Rodney Williams was named MVP of the game as he threw for 214 yards to lead the Clemson offense.  Clemson took a 7-0 lead when RB Tracy Johnson scored on a 7-yard run for the only points of the 1^st quarter.  The drive was highlighted by a 24-yard pass from Williams to WR Keith Jennings.  Penn State got on the board when QB Matt Knizner connected with WR Mike Alexander on a 39-yard touchdown pass.  Johnson second touchdown came on a 6-yard run & gave the Tigers a 14-7 halftime edge.  Again, Williams & Jennings connected on a critical 35-yard pass to help maintain the scoring drive.  The Nittany Lions got within 4 points when PK Eric Etze hit a 27-yard field goal but the Tigers dominated the rest of the game.  Johnson scored his third touchdown on a 1-yard run as Clemson took a 21-10 lead to the 4^th quarter.  Clemson added 2 more touchdowns, a 25-yard touchdown run by Allen & a 4-yard touchdown run by RB Joe Henderson, that gave the Tigers their final margin of victory.  Allen finished with 105 yards rushing with his score, Johnson added 88 yards rushing to his 3 scores & WR Keith Jennings added 7 catches for 110 yards receiving.  Knizner threw for 148 yards with a touchdown as well as an interception in the loss.  The Nittany Lions finished the season 8-4 while the Tigers finished 10-2, ACC Champions, & ranked 12^th nationally.  Penn State would play for The Belt again in 2001.