‘A coaching failure.’ Dabo Swinney sounds off on what ails Clemson’s season
Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said everyone in the program needed to do some “soul-searching” after the Tigers dropped to 1-3 and 0-2 in the ACC last week.
His own soul-searching during an off week apparently led him to this point, which he emphasized over and over during his weekly Tuesday news conference. Clemson’s 2025 season has been a “total coaching failure” so far, he said.
“Period,” Swinney said. “The end.”
Little has gone right for the Tigers this season. Clemson was the preseason No. 4 team and considered a legitimate national championship contender. Instead, a roster loaded with NFL players is 1-3 and winless against power conference teams.
Swinney said he wasn’t trying to excuse his players. Anyone tuning into a Clemson game could tell you players like quarterback Cade Klubnik and defensive end T.J. Parker and units like wide receiver and offensive line need to be better.
“They’ve got accountability, too,” Swinney said.
But in a blunt and revealing midseason critique of himself and his own coaching staff, Swinney, who’s off to the worst start of his 17-year Clemson tenure, pointed the finger at himself and his assistant coaches.
He also hinted at the possibility of postseason staff changes if struggles continue.
“It’s football stuff,” he said. “And to me, when you have guys that don’t play like they’re capable of playing, that’s a reflection of us as coaches. ... Your job as a coach is to get your guys to play their potential, and we’ve failed in that. That simple.”
Breaking down Clemson’s coaching struggles
The Tigers’ issues are many. Clemson’s offense, coordinated by Garrett Riley, ranks No. 116 nationally in scoring offense (19.8 points per game) and recently recorded only the third instance in Clemson history of the Tigers putting up 500-plus yards and still losing. Klubnik, a preseason Heisman Trophy contender, has notably regressed.
Defense, under first-year coordinator Tom Allen, hasn’t been much better. The unit is No. 60 in scoring defense, No. 73 in total defense and has been gashed by Georgia Tech and Syracuse in back-to-back weeks, unable to get key stops.
Swinney said Clemson reset its season goals last week after the Sept. 20 home loss to Syracuse ended the Tigers’ chances of making the 12-team College Football Playoff as an at-large and made them a long shot to make the ACC title game.
The team has also gone “back to basics” on a number of concepts, he said, because through four games he sees a team that has failed on “football stuff”: Getting off blocks, making plays at critical times, routine decision-making.
So, what’s going to change? That’s a little harder to decipher.
No staff changes ... so, what will change?
Swinney on Tuesday essentially said Clemson’s way forward is to stay the course and “play and coach our way out of a hole that we put ourselves in,” starting with Saturday’s ACC road game at UNC (2-2). The Tigers are a 14-point favorite.
After saying last week he didn’t “anticipate” firing any assistant coaches midseason, Swinney confirmed Tuesday he isn’t planning to make any staff changes. He also said he doesn’t plan to shuffle any coaching assignments.
“We’ve got good people,” he said. “But we’ve not done a good job.”
Also not expected to change: Clemson’s drills, Clemson’s practice routines or Clemson’s preparation. Swinney joked the Tigers do “the same drills as everyone in America.” Their issue has been getting practice results to translate to gameday.
Asked if he’d consulted any coaching colleagues or friends outside the industry after Clemson’s 1-3 start, Swinney said he had not — and he did not feel the need to.
His message, over and over, was that coaches simply had to be better.
“We’re not building rockets around here,” he said.
But without any midseason firings or shuffling of assignments, how will Swinney make sure his coaching staff gets the level of accountability he’s promising?
“You play the season and get results,” Swinney said. “Let the chips fall where they may ... And if you’ve gotta make adjustments, you make them. Again, it’s all football stuff. We have to fix football stuff. We will, one way or another.”
Next Clemson football game
- Who: Clemson (1-3, 0-2 ACC) at UNC (2-2, 0-0 ACC)
- When: noon Saturday
- Where: Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill, North Carolina
- Channel: ESPN
- Betting line: Clemson by 14 points
This story was originally published September 30, 2025 at 10:07 AM with the headline "‘A coaching failure.’ Dabo Swinney sounds off on what ails Clemson’s season."
