Say, is Clemson coach Dabo Swinney feeling the heat after his team’s disappointing 1-2 start?
Let’s take a listen to what Swinney has been saying:
“I thrive in the battle, honestly. I have my whole life. Perspective is important. If they want me gone, they can send me on my way. If they’re tired of winning, they can send me on my way. I won’t stop. I’m 55. I’ll go somewhere else and win. I ain’t going to the beach.”
And . . .
“We’ve won this league eight of the last 10 years. Is that good? I’ve got a long memory in case y’all don’t know. This is a program that’s built to last. If you don’t believe in us after we lost just two games, you weren’t all in anyway. Hate to disappoint all the haters out there, but I have a long way to go, boys.”
And . . .
“I’ve learned a lot in this job. One of the things that I’ve learned is when you have a lot of success, people want to tear you down. That just comes with it. People want to tear you down, they want to see you fail, for either to make themselves look better or to promote whatever narrative or agenda they have — that’s part of it. So you have to understand that, and I do.”
So, yeah, Swinney is feeling the heat.
Texas coach Steve Sarkisian also heard from boosters on Saturday in the form of booing from the stands as the Longhorns stumbled through a sloppy victory over UTEP.
He understood their viewpoint.
“We’ve set a standard around here of the way we play football, and there’s an expectation from our fans about the way we play football,” Sarkisian said. “It’s fast, it’s physical, it’s tough, it’s smart, it’s exciting. And, at times, we didn’t play that way this weekend. I think, at the end of the day, they’re spending money, they’re coming to games, they’re sitting in the heat — they want to make sure we give them a reason to be there . . .
“Our fans offer so much support to us that, clearly, if they were booing about the way we were playing just imagine how we were feeling about the way we were playing at some of that juncture in the first half. So, understandable. But, again, don’t give up on us too quick. I think we got a pretty good team.”
Virginia Tech coach Brent Fry and UCLA coach DeShaun Foster have already been cashiered. Florida coach Billy Napier and Oklahoma State coach Mike “I’m a man!” Gundy appear to be in great peril while Kentucky coach Mark Stoops and Arkansas coach Sam Pittman rank among those needing some big victories to cool things down.
THE GIRDIRON CHRONICLES
Here is what folks have been writing about college football:
Manny Navarro, The Athletic: “We’re a quarter of the way through the college football regular season, and six of the teams in the preseason Associated Press Top 25 have already lost games to unranked opponents. ACC favorite Clemson has lost twice, and Notre Dame hasn’t won yet. Kansas State, which was supposed to contend for the Big 12 championship, has lost three times, including to Army and Arizona. You can criticize us media types all you want, but the transfer portal has made it more difficult than ever to predict this sport. We’re not alone. What must millionaire coaches Dabo Swinney, Marcus Freeman and Steve Sarkisian — the real experts — be thinking now?”
Connor O’Gara, Saturday Down South: “As recently as two weeks ago, South Carolina had one of the best quarterbacks in America and Mizzou had someone who had never started a game vs. FBS competition. Fast forward to Week 4, and it’s a completely different story. LaNorris Sellers left Saturday’s loss to Vanderbilt with a head injury after an underwhelming start, while Beau Pribula looked like one of the best quarterbacks in America in his first 3 games. Will Sellers return? And if he does, will Saturday be a breakout performance after a slow start with Mike Shula as the new OC? It’s hard to imagine any scenario in which South Carolina survives on the road as nearly a 2-touchdown underdog without the best version of Sellers. Perhaps of equal significance for South Carolina will be finding some defensive answers for the Pribula-Ahmad Hardy duo after Vanderbilt put up 31 points on Clayton White’s unit at Williams-Brice Stadium. It’ll be a steep climb for the Gamecocks.”
Pete Fiutak, College Football News: “The winner between the Fighting Illini and Hoosiers won’t be assured of a College Football Playoff spot, but nothing less than 10-2 and knocking on the tournament door will be acceptable. Illinois has been wonderful so far, including a dominant defensive performance against Duke. If it can win at Indiana, that leaves Ohio State as the only game it’ll likely be the underdog in. There’s no Oregon, Penn State, or Michigan to face. If Indiana pulls this off, at Oregon and home against Penn State are the only two likely losses, but the road is a bit tougher with a trip to Iowa next. But that’s it. There’s no Ohio State or Michigan on the slate. So, yeah, this might be the biggest football game ever between these two basketball schools, and it should be a blast.”
Heather Dinich, ESPN.com: “In the latest top 12 projection, the No. 12 Longhorns would be out of the playoff to make room for projected American champion South Florida. Let that sink in for a minute: The most hyped team in America this preseason is now projected to watch the playoff from home. ESPN Analytics gives Texas the fourth-best chance to reach the SEC championship game (26%) behind Georgia, Ole Miss and Alabama. The Longhorns’ season-opening road loss to Ohio State isn’t the problem — it’s the product on the field. Quarterback Arch Manning has a QBR of 49.6, No. 88 in the country. He completed 44% of his passes against UTEP on Saturday and threw an interception in the end zone. It’s not just Manning. Penalties. Third-down conversions. Red zone efficiency (or lack thereof). ESPN’s FPI projects Texas will win each of its remaining games except the Nov. 15 trip to Georgia. If that comes to fruition, and Texas finishes as a two-loss SEC team without a conference title, the Longhorns will likely be in the selection committee’s top 12. Whether they are seeded in the playoff, though, depends on if they can improve enough to be ranked in the top 10, where there’s no danger of getting knocked out in favor of the fourth- and fifth-highest-ranked conference champions that might be ranked outside of the top 12.”
David Cobb, CBSSports.com: “Nebraska’s last win over a ranked opponent came against No. 22 Oregon in 2016, amid a 7-0 start that saw the Cornhuskers rise all the way to No. 7 in the AP poll. Not even the boldest of Nebraska’s haters would have predicted what was coming. Following that momentous start to the 2016 campaign, the Cornhuskers are 37-62 and have dropped 27 in a row against ranked foes. It marks one of the most stunning falls from a traditional power in college football history. But the light at the end of tunnel has never been closer than it is now. The 3-0 Cornhuskers host No. 21 Michigan Saturday afternoon on CBS in a breakthrough opportunity for a success-starved program.”
MEGAPHONE
“I never take for granted progress. I never take for granted the positive energy that’s around us. I don’t bathe in it, you know, I don’t sit there and, you know, whatever, swimming. It feels good to have this program at a point where we feel like, week in, week out, we can go win a game. And it doesn’t always have to be perfect, you know, and that that feels good.”
Vanderbilt coach Clark Lea, on the Commodores being ranked 20th this week.
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Jeff Gordon | Post-Dispatch
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