CLEMSON — Clemson football’s disastrous 1-3 start to 2025 has critics and former players wondering what is wrong with the Tigers.
Clemson (1-3, 0-2 ACC) was a preseason darling, garnering accolades and praise to win the conference for the second straight season and be a true contender in the College Football Playoff after the Tigers returned the most production of any Division I program. Yet, through four weeks, Clemson is a longshot to achieve both with some questioning Tigers coach Dabo Swinney and his program after their worst start in 21 years.
Citing Clemson’s downward trajectory since 2021, ESPN sports writer and broadcaster Paul Finebaum suggested Swinney leave the Tigers or become a TV analyst like former Alabama coach Nick Saban.
“My advice to Dabo, and I know he doesn’t like taking advice from people like me, is to get out of there,” Finebaum said on “The Matt Barrie Show” on Sept. 21. “Be quiet. Quit talking because he has no credibility now with his fanbase. They’ve heard the whines before. He’s become a meme.
“For a really good coach … he’s become somewhat of a laughingstock, every time he opens his mouth, and it’s time for him to do one of two things: it’s either consider another school, and I think he’s hirable if he quits talking, or just get away from football and be a TV guy. … I think it’s over at Clemson. Let’s quit trying to sugarcoat it, Matt. Sometimes it’s very difficult to get it back when you’ve lost it.”
On Sept. 16, Swinney, 55, said he has no interest in retiring, saying “If Clemson’s tired of winning, they can send me on my way, but I’m gonna go somewhere else and coach.” If Clemson were to fire Swinney “without cause,” the school would owe him $60 million this season.
ESPN broadcaster Scott Van Pelt picked Clemson to win the national championship entering this season. He admitted he was wrong following the Tigers’ Week 4 loss.
“I couldn’t have been more wrong,” Van Pelt said. “I thought Clemson was something, this year, you can count on, and you can already count three L’s, which is mind boggling.”
MORE: Is Dabo Swinney on the hot seat? No, but it’s been an uncomfortable four weeks at Clemson
Some of Swinney’s former players expressed frustration during Clemson’s struggles against Syracuse too. Former defensive end KJ Henry, who played with the Tigers from 2018-22, questioned Clemson players’ effort.
“Its a players game cant coach attitude and effort … they want to win more than we do,” Henry said on X.
Former defensive end Xavier Thomas, who played at Clemson from 2018-23, posted on X: “At this point, it’s not even an upset anymore” after Syracuse won 34-21 after being double-digit underdogs.
Thomas later replied to a post and said, “Not once would I ever & have ever spoken down on Dabo. But, the Standard will always be the Standard, & it’s not being upheld.”
Clemson trailed 24-7 in the second quarter after Syracuse scored a 22-yard touchdown with safety Ricardo Jones in coverage. Former wide receiver Amari Rodgers, who played with the Tigers from 2017-20, questioned the defensive scheme in a now-deleted X post:
“Know your personnel … no reason why that safety should be 1on1 on an island like that…”
Clemson will try to salvage its season following an open date in Week 5, then will face UNC on the road on Oct. 4 at Kenan Memorial Stadium.