Clemson coach Dabo Swinney was in the spotlight after the Tigers’ 46-45 loss to the Duke Blue Devils in Week 10 action. The loss dropped the Tigers to a 3-5 record this season after being ranked in the top 10 of the AP Preseason Poll.
Swinney’s Tigers were expected to be one of the contenders for the national championship after returning a bulk of last season’s team that reached the college football playoffs after winning the ACC championship game. The pressure appears to be taking its toll, with the Clemson head coach taking a swipe at the media during his regular scheduled availability.
Dabo Swinney Highlights Deion Sanders Connection Amid Struggles
During his weekly news conference before the Tigers’ Week 11 clash against the struggling Florida State Seminoles, Swinney took a swipe at the media for their scathing reports about Clemson’s woeful season.
Clemson coach Dabo Swinney: “People just wanna talk about the bad. People get mad when we talk about what’s been good around here. But if I don’t talk about it, nobody else is gonna talk about it. Nobody else is gonna talk about 11 championships in 14 years”
— Chapel Fowler (@chapelfowler) November 4, 2025
“People just wanna talk about the bad,” Dabo Swinney said. “People get mad when we talk about what’s been good around here. But if I don’t talk about it, nobody else is gonna talk about it. Nobody else is gonna talk about 11 championships in 14 years.”
During those troubled times for head coach and program, Swinney appears to have sought solace in an unlikely place. You couldn’t find much more different people based on their public facade, but Deion Sanders has become a close friend, the Clemson head coach revealed.
Swinney revealed that Colorado coach Deion Sanders reached out to him earlier this week amid their shared struggles with their teams this season.
“Misery loves company,” Swinney said. “We just cried on each other’s shoulders. He’s kind of become a friend, just got a chance to talk to him. He reached out to me this summer, just never really connected. He’s always been a hero of mine, but I’ve always liked him. I’ve only met him one time in person, when he was working with ESPN.
“But we just kind of connected this summer, had a great conversation, and he just reached out yesterday just to kind of chit-chat. You don’t have a lot of peers in this business, and we’re both going through a challenging season.”
Clemson coach Dabo Swinney says Colorado coach Deion Sanders reached out to him this week and they talked. Dabo, joking: “Misery loves company.” Says he and Sanders had a helpful, professional conversation and have struck up a good friendship in recent years
— Chapel Fowler (@chapelfowler) November 4, 2025
Swinney and Sanders are both facing down years after stellar seasons last time out, with the Colorado coach leading the Buffaloes to a 9-4 record and bowl eligibility for the first time since 2016, while the Tigers coach led his team back to the college football for the first time since 2020. The beleaguered Sanders has a 3-6 record this season, almost similar to Swinney’s 3-5 record.
Swinney Takes Blame for Clemson’s Woeful Season
During his weekly news conference, Swinney took the blame for Clemson’s woeful season that has fallen far short of preseason expectations.
“It’s nobody’s fault but mine,” Swinney said.
“Over 17 years, I think I’ve done a decent job, but I have sucked this year. And I’ll be better. I don’t really have much that I can say, because we’ve got to do it. I’m not immune, I don’t know of any coach out there that hasn’t had a bad year somewhere along the way.”
Swinney has led the Tigers to two national championships (2016 & 2018), but ever since, the college football landscape has changed with the introduction of the NIL era, coupled with the transfer portal. Swinney has steadfastly utilized the portal sparingly while preferring to recruit prospects, a stance that has been criticized as outdated by both fans and analysts.