College athletes becoming employees is 'worst thing' for them, Clemson's Dabo Swinney says

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College athletes and the possibility of their status going from amateurs to employees of their schools did not appear to sit well with Clemson head football coach Dabo Swinney.

Last month, a federal judge barred the NCAA from enforcing rules that prohibit NIL compensation from being used to recruit athletes. The judge wrote that the NCAA’s prohibition likely violates federal antitrust law and harms athletes.

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Clemson Tigers head coach Dabo Swinney looks on following their game against the NC State Wolfpack at Carter-Finley Stadium on Oct. 28, 2023 in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Lance King/Getty Images)

The first step toward college athletes being employees was launched before the ruling, as a National Labor Relations Board regional official ruled that Dartmouth men’s basketball players are employees, potentially clearing the way for an election that would create the first labor union for student-athletes.

Swinney disagreed with the model.

"The best thing for coaches in the kind of world we're in right now is for (athletes) to be employees," Swinney said last week, via the Post and Courier. "The worst thing for (the athletes) is to be employees. That's not a world we want for 18-year-olds. … I think we lost our way."

Swinney said he would rather see an emphasis on education while athletes get paid instead of having one or the other.

Clemson Tigers head coach Dabo Swinney looks on before the start of the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl against the Kentucky Wildcats at EverBank Stadium on Dec. 29, 2023 in Jacksonville, Florida. (James Gilbert/Getty Images)

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