By Matthew Miller — sports staffer
“This could be the final play of the college season perhaps, if Clemson gets a touchdown to win it. Bama can hold them out, perhaps a field goal attempt for overtime. [Wayne Gallman motions from the left side of the line to Watson’s left side in the tailback position] Watson [rolls to the right] Touchdown!”
That happened nine seasons ago. After losing in the Championship game the year prior, Clemson won their first championship since 1981. Two years later, they did again in dominant fashion, beating Alabama 44-16.
Today, Clemson sits unranked. They are an afterthought in the playoff committee’s mind. Clemson is just 47-20 over their last five seasons — a stark contrast from the last five years of the 2010s when they went 69-7.
So, what happened? And why does every major media outlet say Dabo Swinney needs to be fired?
College football changed forever on July 1, 2021. NIL introduced a whole new way of recruiting into sports. 10 months later, the rules of the transfer portalchanged, allowing players to transfer as many times as they want.
In under a year everything coaches did to recruit top talent became obsolete.
Coaches adapted, strategies changed, and teams like Texas Tech, Oregon, and Colorado used the portal to improve their teams amidst the change. However, no one used the portal better than Curt Cignetti of Indiana University Bloomington.
Cignetti brought in 94 players over his four classes at Indiana. He acquired players like D’Angelo Ponds, a First-Team All-American and second-round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. Elijah Sarratt, who put up over 1,400 yards and 20 touchdowns in two years before going in the fourth round of the NFL Draft. His most impactful addition, though, came in Fernando Mendoza, the 2025 Heisman winner and first overall pick in the NFL Draft. Then in this past offseason he brings in more offensive firepower in 4-star wide out Nick Marsh and quarterback Josh Hoover
The portal transformed Indiana from the losingest team in college football history into national champions.
Then you have Clemson, who has brought in a total of 15 players during that same four-year span. Swinney’s commitment to building the team through high school recruiting continues to hurt the team. They have 23 All-Americans since 2022. Compared with the 38 All-American selections from 2018–2022, Clemson clearly no longer resembles the juggernaut of years past.
Swinney’s job hangs in the balance after the embarrassing loss in week 1. His way of team building has gone extinct. The refusal to adapt has left Clemson behind the eight ball and scrambling to keep up with the rest of the nation. Without a cake walk schedule, the tigers could find themselves going 8-4. Leaving one of college football’s biggest brands without a coach for the first time since 2008.
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