Swinney is still purpose-driven, wants to win championships and graduate players

Swinney says his program is purpose driven, and has been since day one.

by David Hood - Senior Writer - Tue May 07 07:00:03 GMT-04:00 2024

Dabo Swinney loves to win, and Clemson has won a lot of games during his tenure as the Tigers’ head coach. But he wants to build great men, and he’s done a pretty good job of that.

Swinney has won 170 games as Clemson’s head coach, including eight ACC Championships and two National Championships. On a recent episode of Dusty and Danny in the Morning on SiriusXM, Swinney was asked how he has adapted to the changing times in college football.

“I think we are always adapting, changing, and evolving. That's part of life,” Swinney said. “I didn't have an iPhone how many ever years ago, either. We always change and we always evolve, but bottom line we are purpose-driven. I am still purpose-driven. I am purpose-driven as a man, and that has not changed. And we are purpose-driven as a program, and that has not changed. It's the same purpose we started this program with all the way back to day one when we got it going. So, we've stayed the course when it comes to what we are about and what we believe in and our core values.”

Clemson’s football program set a new program record of a 99 percent graduation rate, which leads all Division I, in a report released last December. For Swinney, that’s the lifeblood of his program.

“How you go about those things change and evolve because you are dealing with people. That's a constant. The No. 1 thing for us continues to be graduation and education,” Swinney said. “Educating and equipping our young people as men. I want them to have a fun time and have a great experience, but I also want them to win a championship. And that has not changed. That has driven this program from day one, and if that's your purpose, then the results should reflect that purpose. And if you really study us, that is exactly what we've done. We've graduated our players at an incredibly high level. We don't have a lot of guys leave here, and our kids have a great experience. Our guys come back all the time.”

Clemson’s PAW Journey is a leadership initiative that holistically develops football scholar-athletes through personal growth, life skills, and professional development. According to Swinney, that sets Clemson apart from other programs.

“We have a program called PAW Journey which I think there is nothing like it in the country when it comes to player development. Especially holistically,” Swinney said. “It's basically a curriculum for developing them as men and equipping them. And even though the world is changing around them, they are still kids. And they have hopes and fears and doubts and expectations and anxiety and life is happening right. And this is about helping with life right now, and not just in football.

“And I want them to win. We have done our share of winning around here as well, but we have done it in a purpose-driven way. We are very much a transformational organization, and it certainly has gotten harder with some of the changes. Everybody is affected to a certain degree, but I would say we are on the lower end of that scale, and I think that's a blessing. We are doing what we do and loving our guys and using this great platform of football to hopefully build great men and transformational leaders and guys that are going to do great things in this world.”