Swinney says 'no one has their head in the sand,' he's 'well aware' of issues

Dabo Swinney talks to the media Tuesday.

by David Hood - Senior Writer - Tue Nov 08 13:46:03 GMT-04:00 2022

CLEMSON – Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney told the media Tuesday that he understands the issues facing his team, and he will work to get it fixed. He said he is also aware that quarterback DJ Uiagalelei needs to get back on track.

Clemson hosts Louisville this weekend at 3:30 p.m. (ESPN) for Military Appreciation Day. The Tigers lost 35-14 at Notre Dame last weekend, and Uiagalelei has not played well in the last two games. Swinney said that Uiagalelei has to play better or Cade Klubnik will get another opportunity.

“DJ played his worst game against Syracuse for sure. He has played well up to that,” Swinney said. “He's 19-5 as a starter. He did not play well at Notre Dame. He played better but he did not play well. He doesn't punt-protect and he's not asked to stop the run. I love how he competed. Now, he has to play better and get back on track. That's just the reality of the situation. We've watched every play with him. If you don't play better, someone else gets a chance.

"We need to get him (Klubnik) more opportunities. He hasn't really had that. We've put him in some tough situations. And that was a tough play the other night. And he'll learn from that. Definitely we have a lot of confidence in him. He's a great, young, player.”

However, Swinney made sure everyone understood at Uiagalelei is still the starter.

“When you've won 14 in a row and you have someone who is your leader who has a bad game, you don't panic and you keep moving,” he said. “This past week he didn't play bad but he didn't play well. We need him to play well. It'll be a big day on Saturday. All of us need to do well, players and coaches. Only thing worse than 8-1 is 8-2. We want to get to 9-1 and be who I know we are."

Swinney spent several minutes reminding everyone of the program’s accomplishments, then said that he can’t waste any time responding to criticism from the outside voices, and that he has firm grasp of the issues facing his program.

"I can't waste an ounce of brainpower on that. How many programs have won two national titles over the last six years? No one has their head in the sand,” Swinney said. “I'm very well aware of every issue that we have but I also know who we are and what we are about. I know what we are built on. I am led by my faith and what is right in my spirit. When it's time for me to change something, it is spirit-led. It's not Internet-led or fan-led. I wouldn't be standing here in front of you if I was driven by that stuff."

Swinney then detailed what he saw at practice Monday.

"Hurt. A hurt group, a mad group. I saw what I wanted to see,” he said. “I saw players take ownership. It's about us now helping them have the right perspective. As I said yesterday, the team that beat us is Notre Dame. They lost three games but have responded. They bounced back. LSU lost to Florida State. We beat Florida State at their place. Now, LSU is one of the better teams in the country. That's what good teams do. That's what good staffs do. You have to have the right perspective when you go back to work. If you don't, those bad moments define you. It hurts because we went 10 weeks without a loss. We made it to week 10 without a loss and we had a bad day. Nobody wins every game forever. You regroup, you have the right perspective because if you don't, so much gets into kids' heads.

"And hey, have some fun. You can't let things steal your joy. There are too many people in this profession who allow that. Their joy is defined by what happens on a scoreboard. That's just not a good thing. It's not healthy. My joy is not defined by that. I love what I do and I love this team, but my joy is doing what I do. I hurt and my players hurt but you can't let the hurt be greater than the hope. We all have challenges and setbacks. We've had one undefeated team since I've been here. You lose one game and some people lose their minds. They want you to get fired and fire everybody and get rid of your players. It's such a sad thing.”

In other words, no one is going to steal his joy.

"I don't grow weary. I grow stronger. I'm excited about having a good Tuesday practice. Ain't nothing going to steal my joy,” Swinney said. “If people can't get on board with that, they're missing a lot of opportunities. If you're only going to be happy if we only win a national championship, then you're going to be down in the dumps and in the gutter. We went 35 years without a national championship. I know this; we're changing a lot of lives around here. That's what it is all about. Never lose your joy in that. We have to enjoy what we are doing. It's important for me and our young souls and hearts that we all take ownership but also learn and grow and keep striving.

"Good news is it wasn't the end of our season. We don't have to wait until next year. We get to play this Saturday and we get to do it in the best venue in college football. We're going to have a lot more good days than bad days. That's for sure."