Clemson might need to have the conversation nobody wanted to have about Dabo Swinney.. I think this thing is over.
And that feels insane to say about the guy who turned Clemson into CLEMSON. Two national titles. Six straight College Football Playoff trips from 2015-20. They even won the ACC again in 2024 and got back to the Playoff, so there was a fair reason to think Dabo still had another run in him.
Then 2025 went 7-6. Dabo called it nobody’s fault but his. This season opened with a 51-10 beating at LSU, and Miami just came into Death Valley and won 41-13. Clemson is 3-2, but against the two ranked teams they’ve played, it’s 92-23.
Clemson used to be the game that told you whether YOUR team was actually a contender. Now LSU and Miami are using Clemson for that same test.
Give Dabo the statue. Put his name everywhere. He built one of the best programs of the playoff era. But you can’t let 2018 keep making the decision in 2026.
Dabo made Clemson matter nationally. Clemson might need somebody else to make it matter nationally again.
