Do not let a convenient narrative get in the way of the truth. Even though Dabo Swinney needs to bounce back in a big way leading Clemson, why is he being compared to Hugh Freeze? That was the main point of discussion in Blake Toppmeyer's article for USA TODAY Sports. He tried to compare what Swinney had to say during ACC Media Days to what Freeze said while he was leading Auburn.
Toppmeyer used this quote from an article published on The Athletic earlier to set Swinney up a bit.
“We’ve won 11 championships in the last 15 years,” Swinney said. "I think the next-closest coach has six.”
Yes, Swinney did talk a lot about his past accomplishments, but at least he actually won something.
"We've had 15 winning seasons," Swinney continued. "13 10-plus win seasons, 14 nine-plus win seasons... and then you have a season like last year, and that's kind of what everybody wants to focus on, and I get that."
Toppmeyer then used a quote from Freeze talking about all the almost wins he had over Nick Saban.
“Honestly, Nick (Saban) is incredible, but I should have four wins against him,” Freeze said.
Again, Swinney needs to do a better job of regaining control of the narrative because this is just getting ridiculous. We are seeing him be compared to a man who got fired in disgrace at Ole Miss over burner phones, who once coached the Liberty Flames to no points from a hospital bed vs. Syracuse, and then went on to be just as bad leading Auburn as his predecessor Bryan Harsin was.
Talking season has quickly devolved into silly season. We cannot wait for the regular season to start.
Dabo Swinney being compared to Hugh Freeze is peak offseason content
No matter how you slice it, this is another piece of offseason content to be tacked onto Clemson's bulletin board. The ACC media has doubts about this team. Whether it be Paul Finebaum, Joel Klatt, or any other notable college football pundit out there, Clemson is the team that controls its season's narrative, and not them. Swinney always has been, and always will be, the better coach over Freeze.
We are talking about a future Hall of Fame head coach being compared to one that will forever reside in the "Hall of Infamy." Swinney may undoubtedly go to the beat of his own drum, but he is not a bad person with questionable character. Yes, he needs to win more games to get people off his back. However, this comparison between Freeze and Swinney needs to stop in the comments yesterday.
Right now, one is coaching a team that may very well reach the College Football Playoff. The other, well, the other is probably trying to get a quick nine in on the links to avoid doing any work around the house. One head coach could win a third national title before all is said and done. The other is well on his way toward devolving into Golf Guy. You can never trust your friend to be there if he is Golf Guy...
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To put it bluntly, this loose comparison Toppmeyer is trying to make between Swinney and Freeze stings a little bit because nobody really wants to be beholden to the past. Clemson used to be great under Swinney, but a lot has changed since COVID. He is young enough in age to revamp all this if he wants to. What we are all watching is how this team will respond to him heading into a critical season.
The pundits will continue to dunk on Swinney until he wins enough games to hush them up a little bit.
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