Clemson coach Dabo Swinney deserves all the criticism amid a 1-3 start — but don’t count him out just yet

For better or worse, Clemson coach Dabo Swinney is the face of college football’s old way of doing things. 

Swinney famously got up in front of reporters and claimed that if the sport started paying players, he’d find something else to do. He has been the most reluctant coach in the sport to embrace NIL and the transfer portal. As recently as two weeks ago, Swinney scoffed at fans complaining about a team that won eight ACC titles in 10 years. 

And yet, Clemson has kept winning — until now. After starting No. 4 for the first time since 2022, the Tigers started 1-3 for the first time since 2004. A 34-21 loss to Syracuse was Clemson’s worst home loss since 2013, and Swinney’s worst ever loss at Death Valley to an unranked opponent. 

Following the game, Swinney’s struggles have been compared to those of Mike Gundy at Oklahoma State, another all-time great who simply refused to adjust. Gundy, the second-longest tenured coach in college football, was fired last week after an identical 1-3 start. 

But unlike Gundy, there’s reasons to believe the tide is turning for Swinney’s program. After the historic loss, Swinney stepped to the table on Tuesday with his hat in his hand. Instead of stubbornness, Swinney showed humility. And for one of the greatest coaches of the 21st Century, that’s the most important step to finding success again. 

“From a big picture standpoint, it’s just been a coaching failure, honestly,” Swinney said. “That’s the best way I can say it. We have just failed as coaches…

“I’m not pointing a finger, I’m pointing a thumb. It starts with me.”

Swinney has grown

For years, the same few criticisms have been levied against Swinney: he was reluctant to pay players, he’s been too loyal to his assistants and he refuses to use the transfer portal. While there’s still room for improvement, Swinney has actually changed in all three areas over the past five years. 

In 2022, after a disappointing season, Swinney fired offensive coordinator Brandon Streeter — a longtime Clemson assistant and former player. He took a big swing, poaching TCU offensive coordinator Garrett Riley fresh off a trip to the national title game. 

Last year, he fired defensive coordinator Wes Goodwin, another longtime Clemson assistant. Clemson poached Penn State defensive coordinator Tom Allen, a former Indiana head coach. Offensive line coach Matt Luke and defensive ends coach Chris Rumph are longtime SEC assistants without Clemson ties. 

His approach to the transfer portal has changed, too. Swinney reeled in elite edge rusher Will Heldt from Purdue, who already has six tackles for loss and three sacks through four games. The program added three transfers overall. It wasn’t enough, but it was progress. 

And then, there’s the money. In 2014, Swinney famously said that if college football moved to a pay-for-play model, he would quit. 

“That’s where you lose me,” he said then. “I’ll go do something else because there’s enough entitlement in this world as there is.” 

Well, for once, Swinney has not lived up to his word. Clemson announced plans to share revenue at one of the highest levels in college football after last season. The program is set to share nearly 85% of its revenue share with the football team, marking one of the highest numbers in college athletics. 

And frankly, the roster is not the problem. Clemson has the talent. Three players are ranked top 17 in the CBS Sports NFL Draft Prospect Rankings. CBS Sports’ Ryan Wilson mocked five Clemson players into the first round of the NFL Draft. 

Swinney has been slow to adjust at times, which is frustrating. However, he only needs to tweak his model, not undergo a full-scale transformation. 

Tigers’ biggest problems

Heading into the season, Clemson appeared to be built almost identically to its greatest teams. Cade Klubnik was projected as a potential No. 1 pick at quarterback, the defensive line ranked as by far the best in the country and the wide receiver room finally looked ready for its close-up. 

However, a lackluster offensive line room and deficient running back room have cost the Tigers dearly during their 1-3 start. Clemson is leaning on converted wide receiver Adam Randall as its top running back, and the Tigers now rank No. 112 nationally with 116 yards rushing per game. Because of the issues running the ball, Clemson ranks No. 97 nationally in both plays per game (64.2) and first downs per game (19.0). 

Klubnik has also been largely mediocre during the run, completing only 60% of his passes at 6.7 yards per attempt with a passer rating of 124.6 — the worst since his true freshman season. There have been numerous calls for Klubnik to be benched, but backup Christopher Vizzina hasn’t shown anything at the collegiate level. 

The defense has issues of its own. Despite an elite front and multiple NFL candidates, the unit ranks No. 58 in yards per play allowed. The group has only improved modestly from a Swinney-worst 5.55 yards per play in 2024.  The bottom really fell out against Syracuse after Clemson held the ball for only eight minutes out of the first 25. A well-timed onside kick proved to be a nail in the coffin for the Tigers. 

Between superstar quarterbacks, elite wide receivers and shifty running backs, Clemson has historically been able to overcome only being a moderate offensive line development program. However, if those talents are harder to find now, Swinney and his staff have to do a better job of compensating elsewhere. 

Their failure to see the holes before they happened left them vulnerable. Swinney has to evaluate his process and see how that happened. 

Some of that may come on the personnel side of things. Swinney is a relentless relational recruiter, but a big picture roster management approach may be necessary in this era. 

According to his bio, Clemson general manager Jordan Sorrells primarily deals with evaluation, communication and logistics between prospects. Head coaches have historically managed the scholarship chart. It may be time for Clemson’s GM staff to get more influence in roster construction. 

Cost not worth it

Even if the program wanted to, moving on from Swinney would be a Herculean task. He signed a 10-year, $115 million contract in 2021. If he was fired this year, Swinney would be due $60 million. That’s nearly triple any non-Jimbo Fisher buyout in college football history. 

Then Clemson would have to go out and spend big money to hire another quality coaching candidate. When the dust settles, Clemson will have to spend more than $70 million in one year just to move on from Swinney. 

The second Swinney leaves Clemson, the program should build a statue for him. They should probably name the stadium after him as well. Any coach who steps into the aftermath would be facing a daunting task, maybe an impossible one. 

So what would create better return on investment: Swinging $70 million on an unknown, or hoping that an old dog can learn some new tricks with $70 million extra? 

Swinney has grown with the times, even if slowly. There’s little question, he’s tried to do what he thought was best for the program, not just stewed in his own stubbornness alone. That’s part of what made the 1-3 start so difficult for the whole program. 

“I’m human, I’m not a cyborg,” Swinney said after the loss to Syracuse. “This is my life, man. I’ve been here 23 years, I love this place. I give this place the very best I’ve got every single day… I also know that we’ll get through it. There will be a lot more great days. Nobody wants to hear that in this moment, but that’s what drives me, being able to look back at moments in my life and in my career and knowing we got through it, we got better.”

Swinney ruffled feathers when he claimed that, at 55, he was only getting started. At the same time, he’s not completely wrong. Eight coaches were hired in the 2024-25 coaching cycle that were older than Swinney, including two at the Power Four level. 

Here’s the real key: Dabo has to actually believe in a fresh start. But after getting severely humbled by a 1-3 start, he seems closer to getting it than ever before. If Swinney can get back on track, he very well could have another decade of high-level coaching. 

It’s time for him to embrace his own new era.