What game was Dabo Swinney watching? While Clemson played well at times, the Tigers were still blown out at home by the buzzsaw Miami Hurricanes last Saturday night, 41-13. The brutal 28-point home defeat knocked Clemson back to 3-2 on the year and 2-1 in ACC play. Although the Tigers can still get to Charlotte, Swinney needs to come to grips with the harsh reality that Clemson is facing.
Swinney mentioned to the media on Monday that the Tigers' two chances at scoring touchdowns on either side of halftime could have made it a 17-17 game. Of all the things that could have been, Swinney failed to realize that close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades, definitely not in the heart of ACC play. This is not the type of false hope that Swinney needs to shamelessly manufacture.
For Clemson to achieve all it can this year, Swinney needs to honestly assess a few things, both with his team and within himself. From a team perspective, Clemson has to improve at quarterback, along the defensive line, and absolutely, without question, up front along the offensive line. Swinney cannot ignore any ongoing problems anymore, believing that they will go away if he does not recognize them.
Clemson coach Dabo Swinney says that he doesn't want to take anything away from Miami because they're a "great team," but Clemson missed on two huge TD opportunities at end of Q2/start of Q3. Says if they hit those, it's a 17-17 game and he thinks they would've had a chance
— Chapel Fowler (@chapelfowler) October 6, 2026
Dabo Swinney cannot see the gap between Clemson and Miami widening
While Swinney made it a point to say that he did not want to take anything away from a great team in Miami, how good is his Clemson really? On a positive side of things, the special teams have been outstanding, the defensive backfield has been much improved, and the linebacking corps has been as advertised. Unfortunately, all anyone can really talk about is how bad Clemson is in the trenches.
When we look at Miami, this might be the closest thing we have to a College Football Playoff lock five, going on six weeks into the season. What team in the ACC is honestly slowing down the Hurricanes? While they have never won the ACC before, it would take a modern miracle for Mario Cristobal's team to not prove victorious in Charlotte. Miami does most things well, while Clemson only does some well.
Right now, Swinney has to accept that there are levels to this. Miami is up there, and Clemson is down here. That being said, every game left on the Tigers' schedule is totally winnable. At Duke during the penultimate week of the season on a Friday night may be tough. So too could hosting Virginia Tech in a few weeks, or traveling on the road to Florida State on Halloween. Be confident, but not delusional.
Overall, Swinney has a narrow tightrope to walk the rest of the way. If Clemson were to win out and look good in most of its remaining seven games, a potential trip to the College Football Playoff could be on the line. This would require them to win the ACC at 11-2 (7-1), almost certainly with an upset win over Miami in Charlotte. It could happen, but do not count on it. Let's try to stay in the real world.
Swinney refusing to see the Miami game for what it truly was is not what Clemson fans want to hear.
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