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Dabo Swinney has Clemson on a path to recruiting irrelevance

By Austin Farmer

Nov 2, 2024; Clemson, South Carolina, USA; Clemson Tigers head coach Dabo Swinney reacts after people in the stands threw water bottles on the field after a call in favor of the Louisville Cardinals Cardinals during the fourth quarter at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ken Ruinard-Imagn Images
Nov 2, 2024; Clemson, South Carolina, USA; Clemson Tigers head coach Dabo Swinney reacts after people in the stands threw water bottles on the field after a call in favor of the Louisville Cardinals Cardinals during the fourth quarter at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ken Ruinard-Imagn Images / Ken Ruinard-Imagn Images
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Dabo Swinney has become the poster child for the anti-NIL/Transfer portal movement. He's been the most vocal coach in college football about the changes, and it seems that it might bite him in the end.

Rumors circulated about another commitment flipping from Clemson this week. Tae Harris — a four-star defensive back from Cedartown, Ga. — received cristal balls from multiple outlets suggesting he would commit to Georgia Tech. Today, he made it official with a post on X (formerly Twitter). It's one thing losing elite prospects to the likes of Georgia and Alabama, but Georgia Tech?

Fans are in an uproar over the flip, and it's hard to blame them. Harris is the sixth decommitment of the 2025 cycle. The one time Clemson fans have seen anything like this in the past decade was three years ago during the 2022 cycle. Four recruits decommitted, but the class still ranked No. 14 in the country, according to 247Sports, and consisted of 21 pledges. With Harris' decommitment, the Tigers are ranked No. 29 with 13 commits.

Clemson's lost nearly that many players to the transfer portal in the past three seasons, with 11, 12, and 12 leaving, respectively. Adding in the number of players the Tigers lose each year naturally from eligibility, the total amount of scholarship players will slowly deplete. Not only will the total number of players decrease, but the average team age will drop with each season, too.

Whether you agree or not with his opinions on the new era of college football, the state of Clemson's recruiting is completely on Swinney. It's one thing to go down with the ship, but it's another to refuse to alter course despite seeing a giant iceberg in front of you. Can Clemson afford another season of this? It could take the program years to regain recruiting prowess after the country sees it as the anti-NIL program.

Swinney is a great coach, and he can lead Clemson back to the heights we saw just a few years ago, but his philosophy on NIL and the transfer portal must change quickly. It doesn't have to be all-in like Florida State or Ole Miss, but Clemson needs to supplement what it's losing in the portal. If not, get used to losing recruits left and right.

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