Swinney on perspective and his program: "Sometimes the bandwagon can get a little too full"

Clemson coach Dabo Swinney says the hard times have shown him who is with him and the program.

by TigerNet Staff - Mon Oct 16 21:22:19 GMT-04:00 2023

Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney isn't a fan of some perspectives on the game of college football, and particularly what he's seen in perception of his program.

The Tigers head to Miami unranked this week with a 4-2 record (2-2 ACC) after starting the season at No. 9 in the polls.

After a near unparalleled run while making the Playoff from 2015-20, winning two national titles and making four national championship games, the Tigers are all but shut out in a third consecutive season from the last iteration of the four-team CFP (going to 12 next year).

Swinney said on his call-in show Monday that he's been able to see who is truly with his program through recent events.

"We're at a point in our time, and I hate that, where people -- if you don't go undefeated -- people say you're losers. That you're terrible," Swinney said. "And it's such a terrible mindset. And honestly maybe we need to lose a few games and lighten up the bandwagon. Sometimes the bandwagon can get a little too full. That's the one good thing about going through a little so-called adversity. You really find out who's with you and who's not, but as far as our program, we may win every one of these games out. We could lose every one of them. We're a really good team that can beat anybody and we're a team that can lose to anybody, but our program is built to last.

"We're going to be around for a long time. We've got the makings -- I really believe the foundational pieces to the next championship at Clemson is on this team. I don't have any doubt about that. So, I've been here long enough and I've done enough that I've got a good feel for what you have to have, but it's not easy to win. It's really hard to win, and sometimes you can win so much you can lose appreciation for it. And so, I appreciate some of the longtime Clemson people that have good perspective."

Swinney went into the details a bit on how his team got here and what he's expecting in the future.

"It's hard to win. Sometimes you go through a moment here or there -- we're not immune to getting beat," Swinney said. "As you said, we've got a really good team, and we've got a great group of kids that are incredibly committed. Sometimes in this game of football some crazy things can happen, but we've been in position to win every single game. We've outgained every opponent. We've had a great third down year. We can run the ball. We can stop the run. We've had some big plays in the pass game. We've not given up a ton of big plays on defense. Our punter has had a great first half. We've got playmakers and we've got depth that is emerging on this team. Our quarterback is growing every week. Certainly the turnover margin has been -- it's the only reason we're not undefeated. Because the kids have played their butts off. And again, it is what it is. You don't change that. It is part of the game. But, you know, they do call it a season for a reason...

"Because these kids are in a situation where there's a lot of noise all the time, and I hate that, but that's the world we live in and it comes with the territory. I really like our team."

The Tigers are preparing for another one of the most important games of the season, which come every week in the program.

"Again, we're going to battle our butts off," Swinney said. "And it is, if you have a mindset anything than this is the biggest game of the year, you're never going to be consistent. And we've had a lot of competitive stamina in this program for a long time and that ain't changing. These guys are rocking and rolling, and again, we've got a great foundation of young players on this team and we've got more on the way and I think we've got us a dynamic quarterback that win at the highest level. It's a lot of fun.

"This is a challenge -- this is what I love. I love the challenge of building a team and starting over every year and helping these guys develop into the best version of themselves. We're not perfect in that, but we've got a pretty good process here in place."