Anthony Wilson
AMELIA ISLAND, Fla. — Dabo Swinney is acutely aware of the criticisms and narratives circulating outside of Clemson and doesn’t exactly agree with either approach.
“We’ve been very consistent, even over the last three years,” Swinney told CBS Sports. “There’s a perception, a narrative that spreads that we’re terrible, that we’re not good because we didn’t make the Final Four. We’ve made it six years in a row. It’s tough, you know? You have to have a little luck along the way and we’ve had some moments difficult, but in that three-year period we won 30 games.”
It was always going to be difficult for Swinney to accelerate the sonic-speed momentum Clemson mustered in the mid-2010s, when only Alabama rivaled the Tigers’ success rate. Clemson has won eight of 12 ACC championships while posting 13 consecutive seasons with nine wins or more, but the program’s trajectory has stagnated, if not declined considerably, since the advent of the transfer portal.
Last year, Clemson failed to win 10 games for the first time in 13 years. While that win-loss record is acceptable for most programs, it’s a disappointment given Clemson’s otherworldly trajectory as of late.
“Not all 9-4s are the same, right?” Swinney said.
Not after six consecutive games in College football Playoff that included two national titles in three years.
Times have changed and the question is whether the plan for winning a national championship has changed. The portal, player pay for his name, image and likeness, and unlimited free agency turned the sport upside down. The sudden changes have led to massive changes in recruiting philosophies at some schools, where it is common to add 20 or more transfers per year. In January, the greatest coach of all time, Nick Saban, retired from Alabama, citing (at least in part) seismic changes in player behavior.
Meanwhile, Clemson has been an island in the storm. Swinney rarely uses the portal to supplement his roster, even in the face of noticeable deficiencies, especially as a receiver in recent seasons. He only added walk-ons, including a quarterback who left Clemson for Northwestern only to return to the ACC school. Only four universities did not add transfers this year; Clemson was the only non-service academy among them.
Swinney has been the target of criticism since taking over as Clemson’s coach 16 years ago, but even more so in the portal era. Last week he woke up the masses again when he declared: “most of the portal guys aren’t good enough to play for us.” Later that day on the ACC Network, he tried to oversimplify recruiting by grouping high school players with veteran college players in the transfer portal.
“Honestly, every player is technically a transfer,” he said. “We just hired a whole class of high school transfer guys.”
Leaving aside exaggerated or simplified conclusions, Swinney seems not to be intimidated by criticism and to be firm in his philosophy.
“There are a lot of storms surrounding college football right now, but we’re kind of anchored, and it’s not that we haven’t been affected, but we’re not just going to be swept out to sea and swim for our lives,” Swinney told CBS Sports. “We’re very lucky because we’ve been established and we’ve been consistent for a long, long time. We’re still the same things we were 16 years ago.”
Swinney spoke to CBS Sports last week in a one-on-one interview during the ACC’s annual spring meetings in Amelia Island, Florida. The coach discussed the portal, criticism from the media and fans and whether the Tigers can return to the CFP and win the ACC after a three-year skid.
Brandão Marcello: Much has been made about Clemson’s lack of action in the transfer portal, but you’ve managed to have success over the years. What do you think of the criticism that Clemson doesn’t use the portal enough, and how have you managed to be successful without using the portal?
Dabo Swinney: Well, I think we are anchored, firstly, on a very strong foundation that is rooted in fundamental values. We are very purpose driven and have been for 16 years. That hasn’t changed. We are very intentional early in the recruiting process. We just had 127 guys come through the spring and we have 125 that are still on the team. I think this is a rare thing. We don’t have many guys who leave Clemson without a degree. We rarely have a guy that gets a chance to start for us leaving Clemson. We are very transparent and detailed in what we do. But I think, again, the main thing is that we are driven by purpose and we are rooted and anchored in a foundation. There are a lot of storms surrounding college football right now, but we’re kind of anchored, and it’s not that we’re not affected, but we’re not just swept out to sea and swimming for our lives. We’re very lucky because we’ve been established and we’ve been consistent for a long, long time. We are still the same things we were 16 years ago.
This year, we had the highest graduation success rate in all of college football – in fact, the highest recorded in the last 20 years. Nobody wants to talk about it. We are 99%. We just stayed the course of who we are and how we do things.
In perception, Clemson fell
“We’ve been very consistent, even over the last three years. There’s a perception, a narrative that’s spread that we suck, that we’re not good because we didn’t make the Final Four. We made it six years in. It’s hard, you know? You have to have a little bit of luck along the way, we had some tough breaks, but in that three-year period, we won 30 games in a row: we won the league, we won two bowl games. There’s probably not four or five teams that can say that. every year, but you want to be a team that has a chance to compete, and I think we’re a team that shows that consistently. Consistency on and off the field has been what has led us to hang up our hats, and we continue to do so.
Many returning players
“We have guys that are developing, we have a lot of guys back on this team. We had two guys [leave] offensively: we lost a center and we lost (running back Will) Shipley. So we have a lot of guys back. Eight players up front who started for us on the offensive line. We have a great restricted room. We finally feel like we’re where we need to be at receiver, especially getting guys back from last year. We love (running back Phil) Mafah, we love the young talent behind him. We love our quarterback room. Cade Klubnik has been a starter for a year and is developing and improving. I love how he ended the season.
“Defensively, [we] we ranked eighth in the country last year (287.8 yards per game) and got a lot of guys back. We have good leadership and athletic ability. We signed a kicker. The starters coming back to this team, when we look at our roster, we really like who we have, and so we were able to recruit another good class and add some more depth, as well as some guys that are back as depth from last year’s team. also. We got our punter back, our two snappers.”
Close, but turnover dashes 2023 hopes
“It takes a bit of luck along the way, but this is a team that over the last two years has been close. Last year we ranked eighth in the country on defense, but we ranked 112th in turnovers on offense (tied for 108th with 22) and that really took a toll on us. Lost twice in overtime, in overtime and on a pick-six. You know, we lost one game, this is in the 128-year history of Clemson football, when we rushed for 250 (yards) and passed. by 250 and we were defeated, that never happened. We did a poor job taking advantage of some opportunities and taking care of the ball in critical situations, and that cost us, but we recovered and finished well. to improve. The year before, we were in the playoffs and lost a point at home (against South Carolina) with two fourth-quarter turnovers.
“We’ve been there. Nobody on this team has been to the national championship, so they’re a hungry group. They’ve worked and I’m excited to compete. The schedule is very tough. It always is. We’re opening with probably the team that’s been the best. of the country for the last three or four years (Georgia, I’m looking forward to a big challenge).
You can check out Swinney’s full interview with 247Sports HERE (VIP access required).
