CHARLOTTE, N.C. — What a difference a year makes for Clemson football.
At last year’s ACC Kickoff, the Tigers were popular preseason picks to run away with the ACC, make the College Football Playoff and win the national championship.
However, Clemson finished with a 7-6 record. It marked the second-worst season in Clemson coach Dabo Swinney‘s full 17 seasons.
“You get what you earn. It’s not what people predict,” Swinney said July 16.
This season, Clemson is predicted to miss the conference championship and CFP after immense roster turnover, including losing quarterback Cade Klubnik and eight other players to the NFL draft. Some experts also wonder if this will be Swinney’s final year with the Tigers if Clemson has another disappointing season.
“Haters hate, right? As I said, there’s a bunch of hate. I don’t know who wrote that song, but the one thing about haters, when you win, it don’t matter what they say. And when you lose, it don’t matter what you say.”
Swinney, who has thrived as the underdog in his coaching career that includes two national championships and nine ACC titles, is welcoming the lack of expectations for his team in 2026.
“This year, ain’t none of y’all going to pick us. Ain’t none of y’all going to say anything good about us,” Swinney said.
The lack of preseason praise comes after the Tigers used the transfer portal more than ever, which many of Swinney’s critics wanted him to do, and Clemson hired a new offensive coordinator.
The Tigers welcomed 11 transfers, a single-season school record, with nine players on defense and two on offense.
However, a quarterback wasn’t among the portal players. Despite losing Klubnik, a three-year starter, Swinney is confident in Clemson’s quarterback room led by Christopher Vizzina, who is the frontrunner to be the starter after waiting three seasons.
Swinney also expressed confidence in freshman Tait Reynolds, who is competing with Vizzina to be Clemson’s starter after winning the backup job in spring practice.
“We made a decision that we weren’t going to go and get some shiny object at quarterback,” Swinney said. “Well, we understand that. If it doesn’t work out, we’re going to be just raked over the coals for that.”
Swinney rehired Chad Morris as Clemson’s offensive coordinator after he served in the same role in 2011-14. He helped save Swinney’s job in 2011, winning 10 games and the ACC after the Tigers had a 6-7 season in 2010.
However, Morris’ hire was criticized. He was one of the worst coaches in SEC history, winning four games in two seasons at Arkansas in 2018-19. Morris also hasn’t been a playcaller since 2020 with Auburn and did not coach last year to watch his son, Chandler Morris, play at Virginia.
Swinney is confident in his decisions and understands the potential blowback of another dismal season, including increased hot-seat talk for him. His first test will come when Clemson faces LSU on Sept. 5 (7:30 p.m. ET, ABC) at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
How Dabo Swinney reacted to Brendan Sorsby’s sports betting saga
A “shiny object” that Clemson could have pursued at quarterback was Cincinnati transfer Brendan Sorsby. He ultimately transferred to Texas Tech but won’t play after violating NCAA gambling policies while at Cincinnati and admitting to doing so.
The quarterback placed thousands of bets on various sports, including games involving Indiana, while he was a true freshman with Texas Tech in 2022.
Sorsby sued the NCAA and was granted a temporary injunction to play for Texas Tech despite violating the NCAA’s gambling policies. He later withdrew his lawsuit, making him ineligible to play at the collegiate level.
Swinney said Clemson educates players on not sports betting to avoid what Sorsby has done. Clemson tight end Olsen Patt-Henry said maintaining his eligibility is why he avoids it, which Sorsby lost after participating in it.
“When you see consequences like that, that makes a difference,” Swinney said. “Hopefully, it will be a little bit more of a deterrent.”
Derrian Carter covers Clemson athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email him at DCarter@usatodayco.com and follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @DerrianCarter00
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Why Dabo Swinney welcomes haters, lousy predictions for Clemson football in 2026
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