Clemson 'has never been better,' confident Swinney says

CLEMSON, S.C. — Clemson has not made it to the College Football Playoff the last two seasons, prompting some outside the program to question where the Tigers are headed.

But coach Dabo Swinney remains adamant that his program has never been better, and will be one of the teams competing for a spot in the playoff this season, he told ESPN.com during a wide-ranging interview in his office Monday.

«People, they need stories and it's a story if Clemson went to six playoffs in a row and then didn't make it. What's wrong with them?» Swinney said. «There's nothing wrong with Clemson. There's nothing wrong with our program. In fact, I would argue, honestly, our program has never been better.»

When asked why he feels that way, Swinney said, «Our people, the kids on this roster, the talent, our coaches, our support staff, our administration, our infrastructure, our connectivity. I'm better now than I've ever been as a head coach. It's not even close, where I am now to where I was in '13, when we won our first BCS game. Never been better.»

Swinney, going into his 16th year as Clemson head coach, made perhaps the splashiest move of the college football offseason when he decided to hire TCU offensive coordinator Garrett Riley to get his offense back on track. Clemson has not played up to its own standards on offense, starting in 2021, when DJ Uiagalelei struggled as the starter.

After offensive coordinator Tony Elliott left to become Virginia coach, Swinney promoted quarterbacks coach Brandon Streeter to offensive coordinator.

Though Clemson improved — gaining 40 more yards per game than the previous year — the Tigers were still not close to the standard they had come to expect and ranked No. 47 in the country in total offense.