The Clemson Tigers are in the midst of their worst season since 2010, but college football expert Paul Finebaum sure isn’t feeling sorry for Clemson or head coach Dabo Swinney.
During a recent appearance on The Matt Barrie Show for ESPN, Paul Finebaum made it clear that he doesn’t think Dabo Swinney has anyone to blame but himself for Clemson’s recent downfall.
“The saddest story in college football this year is Dabo Swinney and Clemson,” Finebaum said according to On3. “There is not a single person outside of that area code who is feeling sorry. This is a coach who has thumbed his nose at the norms of where we are today.
“He has made countless mistakes and it’s now blowing up. I think the real question for Dabo Swinney and Clemson is can you get it back? I mean, these are not easy things to get back. Nebraska has been in the wilderness for 25 years. Other programs have been out there.”
As for what went wrong at Clemson, Finebaum thinks Swinney simply failed to evolve with the times.
“He had such a recruiting base,” Finebaum said. “That’s where he was winning and I’m not suggesting that that’s gone off the deep end. He’s still recruiting well, but it’s it’s more difficult. And I think you have to be concerned.
“I don’t know when I’ve seen someone really at the top of the game fall this dramatically, this quickly and not really be in their seventies or something, where all of a sudden you just hit that age and it’s a crash and burn. This guy is barely 50 I think and it’s staggering to watch what has happened, and it seemed like it happened overnight.”
We’ll have to see if Clemson can turn things around in the coming seasons, but it’s not looking good for the program.
