Dabo Swinney has set the bar for success so high that it always requires sheer brilliance out of him to match it every season. 2023 was a blip of failure in his career, which is otherwise loaded with all kinds of titles. With a reinvigorated Cade Klubnik in town, Swinney took Clemson back to winning ways. When it comes to the Tigers, one can always expect either a national championship or a conference title win. And this season is no exception.
Swinney went back to the board and fixed his issues from 2023. He went back to double-digit wins in 2024, but some surprise setbacks stand out like sore thumbs in their commendable run from last season. Swinney lost to Louisville, South Carolina, where odds were high on Clemson emerging as the victor. He faces both teams once again in 2025. But he also brings a production capable of recreating last year’s successes, and maybe go higher. Klubnik is going to carry forward from a brilliant season last year, which saw him break some school records. He will join 15 other starters on the team, which means that Swinney is well-positioned to go the extra mile this season.
In a June 24 episode of the Cover 3 Podcast, Austin Hannon declared the criteria for the Tigers’ success. “I think it’s 11 wins in the regular season… Anything below 11-1 feels like a disappointment. I mean, they went 9-3 last year. That was a disappointment because they felt like they let 2 slip away with the Louisville and South Carolina games at home.” Swinney comes prepared this season with learnings from those losses. He has a team that ranks among the best in college football in preseason lists. And, Swinney has the track record of being one of Clemson’s best.
“We got the same team we had last year, so how are we preseason (No. 1)? What happened?” Swinney asked at an interview with ESPN’s Rece Davis and Bill Belichick. The HC is being modest. But retaining the talent from last year, bringing on Tom Allen as DC, and a great relationship between Garrett Riley and Clemson’s trump card, Cade Klubnik, make the case for Clemson putting forward a flawless season. Klubnik will be backed by a supporting cast consisting of Antonio Williams, T.J. Moore, and Bryant Wesco Jr.. The ceiling is high for Clemson. But Dabo Swinney has the means to reach it.
However, the season opener with LSU stands as an extremely defining moment in the upcoming season, which Swinney has to swing his way.
Clemson vs LSU will be tone-setting for Dabo Swinney’s 2025 run
The Clemson-LSU game will be a battle of two of the best quarterbacks entering the 2025 season. Garrett Nussmeier looks all fired up to end his season on a high note. His form and potential are regarded to be worthy of getting him picked as the No.1 prospect in the 2026 draft. Klubnik is not far behind, and sometimes clashes with his LSU contemporary in these lists. However, there is a pressing need for Clemson to win this game.
“If LSU goes into Death Valley, the Clemson Death Valley this fall and wins that game convincingly in week one, I think there’s going to be some pretty negative talk around Dabo Swinney and his program,” Hannon remarked. “And there probably should be. I mean, that’s a game I would say that they not necessarily expect to win, but you’ve got it on your home field,” he added. The Tigers were 3-1 in home games in the ACC, with that sole loss being to Louisville. After all, nobody knows Death Valley better than Clemson. It’s a high-stakes game, set in their home ground. Winning this game will set the tone for Dabo Swinney’s campaign in 2025.
Fans have always had sky-high expectations for Clemson in the Dabo Swinney era. Going 11-1 in the regular season is a lofty ask, but not surprising given the caliber of the team. Can the Tigers’ HC deliver upon these hopes?
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