If Clemson’s defense had only played as well on Saturday in Atlanta as Dabo Swinney defended his program on Tuesday, the Tigers might not be sitting here at 1-2 and out of the AP Top 25 for the first time since the 2023 season. What’s wrong with Clemson? Nothing that a few more made plays won’t fix according to Swinney who spent the better part of his press conference on Tuesday defending his 17 year run with the Tigers.
The Tigers are back at home Saturday for a Noon kickoff against Syracuse. The Orange are 2-1 and feature a wide open passing attack led by former Notre Dame quarterback Steve Angeli. He’s currently ranked as the #1 passer in the country at 357 yards per game.
Key comments from Swinney Tuesday
- Only played one quarter of the season, lot of football left, kick off second quarter this week, still looking for that best game, have a complete game, try to play their best game and find a way to win.
- They’ve got their backs against the way, they’ve put themselves in a hole, they just need one more play, one more score, on more stop. Love the team and the staff and they know what they’ve got to do.
- Syracuse coming in off of two good wins, they are a very tough team, well coached, lot of respect for Fran Brown, they are physical on both sides, they fly around and will get after you.
- Syracuse plays really fast, length outside, huge upfront, quarterback came in from Notre Dame has done a good job, they play fast and they look to throw on every down, every run they have is an RPO.
- They’ve got to find a way to affect the quarterback. On defense, Syracuse is very aggressive up front, they are physical and they fly to the ball. They play really hard.
- First two games on defense were good enough to win, they “stunk” in Atlanta, and give Haynes King some credit. That game they didn’t get it done defensively.
- Got to be better on third down on defense and get off the field. No complaints about the efforts of the players on defense.
- Have not set the edge well enough on the perimeter, have not gotten off blocks well enough, been too soft, Strozier played more because Hampton wasn’t good in man coverage with his eyes. Strozier deserves to play more.
- 17 years here they’ve had one bad season, 2010 they won six games and had five very close losses. The worst season they’ve had in 14 years is nine wins.
- The reason he believes he has the best program in college football is that they never quit. They are built for adversity.
- If they are tired of winning they can send him on down the road, they’ve only won eight of the last ten ACC titles. But he’ll go somewhere else and coach. He’s not going to the beach, he’s only 55 and just getting started. Got a lot way to go.
- Confirmed that players committed to Clemson can’t take other visits, and said he won’t have players committed elsewhere in for visits. Asked what he says to a commitment who visits another school, he said he wouldn’t talk recruiting in this presser.
- Believes Clemson will win national championships again in the future.
If I understand the word’s meaning properly, and know how to spell it, Dabo is a narcissist. He threw Klubnik under the bus after LSU, and repeatedly had to mention Wesvo’s dropped pass after the Ga Tech loss. And every time there is legitimate and accurate criticism, he goes off on these childish ‘’’if y’all don’t love me and worship me even when our team is playing lousy football, I’ll pack up and find someone who will love me and worship me for 10 million a year.’’’
For God’s sake it’s 2025. Your team is 1-2. It’s not 2019 and Deshaun Watson and Trevor Lawrence aren’t running down that hill. Real leaders don’t point to the past in the face of adversity. They live in the present. Throw your scrapbook away, stop blaming your players, and stop your whining. It’s getting old.