How Dabo Swinney downplaying the transfer portal is hurting Clemson | College Football Enquirer
Yahoo Sports national columnist Dan Wetzel is joined by senior college football reporter Ross Dellenger and Sports Illustrated’s Pat Forde to discuss how Dabo Swinney's reluctance to use the transfer portal is hindering Clemson's success. Hear the full conversation on the “College Football Enquirer” podcast - and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen.
Video Transcript
I was, I remember sitting in dad's office maybe two years ago and it was pretty clear to me that he plays plenty of attention to it and know it exists and know the buzz exists about him and his resistance to certain things maybe the other coaches are doing and it feeds into exactly what Dan was saying about.
He's just pulling your leg people like his whole thing is like doing things his way all the rah, rah and you're like, how is this guy even for real?
Like he's so positive and over the top and he just talk about everything and Ross is completely right.
He knows everything that's getting said about them.
He's trying to, you know, we got this record against this and this and he's got all his stats and he's constant salesman, you know, like, how is this actually gonna be?
But he's so infectious in his, his positivity that he got all these guys.
He got this recruit.
Um, I mean, they had a five year stretch, it went 69 and five.
He did all this stuff and he's like, I'm doing it my way and now his way was getting, you know, incredible recruits, um including Trevor Lawrence, uh Shaun Watson and all these guys, but they were never getting those guys before Dabo came along and just was just relentlessly positive and talking to players and their parents this way.
And so you s, you know, he has a benefit of a doubt of like he doesn't do everything by the book.
He's worked miracles before.
And like I said, I think if you were to say, how would you like your child to be treated, how would you like your coach to act all those things?
What is the most collegiate version of college football?
This would kind of be it.
I mean, it's a great ideal to follow.
I believe in you.
I sat in your living room, I talked to your coaches, I talked to your mom.
I, I need you.
I think you, we can make you a player here as a sophomore.
I'm not just gonna bring in a senior from, you know, Citadel to take your spot.
You've earned this right to be the starter.
It's like it's, it's very high school sports.
Uh, this is our team this year.
Maybe we, maybe this senior class doesn't, doesn't make it to regionals.
But you know what?
We had a great year.
Anyway, next year we got all these soft, they're gonna, we're gonna get there, we'll be back right.
He's coaching it that way and it's, it's really not.
It's, it's nice.
To hear it's just the last three years.
He's 3010.
And when you set that 3010, you know, he did go four and four AC C, he won eight.
No, the year before.
So he's still, it's still Clemson.
They still got a lot of guys and there's still a lot of high school recruits who want to do this.
But you can't 69 to 69 to 5 to 3010 is tough.
And it's basically you're not using all the tools at your disposal.
I mean, at what point are you not serving your players by adding help?