Dabo Swinney's brutal honesty over playoff loss hints at possible changes for Clemson

It was a good season, but not a great one for the Clemson Tigers. While they did win the ACC and made it back to the College Football Playoff for the first time since 2020, they went 9-3 during the regular season and tasted defeat for times on the year. For a team that was a perennial fixture in the playoff during the four-team format, it seems as though playoff expansion has opened up their eyes.

In the immediate aftermath of No. 12 Clemson's 38-24 defeat to No. 5 Texas, Tigers head coach Dabo Swinney said that all sorts of changes are now on the table for the program. He may have been complimentary of his players and coaching staff, but he may have implied that Clemson is finally going to be a serious participant in the transfer portal. They are starting to dip their toes into it now.

Here is the quote Swinney said about the changes Clemson needs to make after the playoff loss.

"We've got to improve everywhere if we want to get to the top ... Good enough to get the playoff, good enough to win the league, not good enough to win it all."

I appreciate his honesty in this moment. Hopefully, he can have a second act as an all-time coach.

Let's now unpack why this playoff loss could be the best thing to ever happen to Clemson football.

Dabo Swinney seems open to making wholesale changes at Clemson

What seemed to happen on the football field Saturday evening was a realization for Swinney. The same old, same old just is not good enough anymore. Yes, winning the ACC this season was a huge deal for a Clemson team that had to handle a lot of adversity at various parts of the campaign. However, I think a lack of roster depth is going to be an issue for teams not winning national titles.

Because the playoffs is now three and four rounds instead of two like it had been for a decade, you have to account for injuries and attrition to be able to run the gauntlet. Since Clemson did not use the transfer portal, the Tigers were never able to complement their roster when inevitable departures happened. You will never build a champion by way of the portal in college football, but you still need it.

Factor in that Swinney is never going to coach anywhere else and what are you going to do? Keep doing whatever it is you are doing until you are dead? That is how you let the game pass you by. Swinney is still youthful and has plenty of time to win a third national title at Clemson, but he has to adapt to the ever-changing landscape of college football. Losing to Texas was the new beginning.

If we see Clemson have a renaissance under Swinney in the next few years, we will all go back to this.