As we move into spring ball, there are several teams like Oklahoma, USC, and Florida State who have announced that they would not be holding traditional spring games. There are questions about the rest of college football moving toward a "no spring game" schedule in the offseason.
Of course Dabo Swinney had to give his thoughts on the situation.
Swinney spoke to the media and said that canceling the spring game was out of the question and it won't "stop tampering" which honestly wasn't much of a concern.
And the quote was very Dabo-esque.
NEW: Dabo Swinney says that canceling spring games 'ain't gonna stop tampering'
— On3 (@On3sports) March 4, 2025
“We’re going to have a spring game... whether you have a spring game or not it’s going to be tampering.
Ain’t nobody going to go look at the spring game, go, ‘Oh yeah, boy'”https://t.co/l3drQFWTrh pic.twitter.com/oh2f0P6ApI
First, I don't know who told this man that spring games were getting canceled due to tampering but that seems to be on Swinney's mind. Second, top programs already know who the best players on opposing teams are, they don't need to watch a spring game to realize that. And lastly, it feels like tampering is the top thing on Swinney's mind in terms of concerns about the state of college football.
I do like this quote, though: "Ain’t nobody going to go look at the spring game, go, ‘Oh yeah, boy'”
It's true, no team is watching a spring game for players to target via the transfer portal and behind-the-scenes shady NIL deals. There's plenty of tape out there already for the top players.
Swinney is a heck of a personality and any time he speaks, college football fans listen. He'll likely have more to say this spring about the often-brought-up transfer portal and other "issues" in the sport.
Rest easy, Clemson fans, the Tigers will not veer away from the spring game.