If you’ve paid any attention to the national media this offseason, you’ve seen the same tired routine: move the goalposts, pile on Dabo Swinney, and pretend like Clemson’s run at the top is ancient history. Sure, last year’s 7-6 record stung—no one in Tiger Town would say otherwise—but let’s not forget, that’s just the second time in nearly two decades that Dabo’s Tigers have stumbled. Yet somehow, the so-called experts at Sporting News, CBS Sports, and everywhere in between have rushed to toss our two-time national champion out of their top ten coaching lists. One critic even had the nerve to drop Dabo all the way to number 28. Talk about disrespect.
Anyone who’s actually watched Dabo Swinney turn Clemson from a program in limbo into a full-blown college football powerhouse knows how laughable this sudden rush to bury his legacy really is. Roy Philpott, who knows this program inside and out, didn’t hold back when he saw those so-called rankings. On the Gramlich & Mac Lain show, Philpott said what every Tiger fan was thinking when those graphics flashed across the screen.
“I’ve seen those lists, and I have audibly laughed out loud. That is egregious,” Philpott declared. “You don’t get to his position, you don’t win two national championships, you don’t play for two more, you don’t go to six straight playoffs unless you’re highly intelligent, unless you understand the game, you understand human beings, you understand personalities and how to manage a large organization.”
Philpott made it clear: Dabo’s greatness isn’t just about trophies, it’s about thriving in chaos and always finding a way to adapt. Just look at this offseason—Swinney has reloaded through the portal like never before and brought Chad Morris back into the fold to spark the offense. That’s not a coach stuck in the past, that’s a leader who’s hungry to win right now.
But here’s the real reason Tiger fans should be fired up for that Week 1 showdown with LSU: it’s not just about new faces on the roster, it’s about Dabo’s mindset. Clemson has always been at its most dangerous when the world counts us out and paints us as the underdog. Philpott sees it too—the fire in Dabo’s eyes is back, and that edge should have the rest of the ACC shaking in their boots.
“Hearing him talk, maybe most importantly, and reminding folks – you get a chippy Dabo Swinney this time of year,” Philpott observed. “Because I think he’s been sent those lists, and he hears the narratives, right. So, all of that, to me, if I’m a Clemson fan, that’s something I love... I hear the edge and the tone that I’ve heard at times, even in this recent run and when things haven’t gone well. But this one, it feels and sounds different to me.”
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