Copyright Charleston Post and Courier
CLEMSON — Dabo Swinney has spent enough time around Tim Bourret to know he doesn’t speak out of turn. “Clemson Google,” as the longtime sports information director is lovingly known, has a mind filled with facts, including the Tigers’ win-loss record in certain uniform combos. But the bespectacled Notre Dame grad, who joined Clemson’s athletic department in 1978, serving as Swinney’s first PR advisor, isn’t very cocky. Not until Nov. 8, at least. Because the date of Clemson’s game with Florida State happened to also be the day Bourret was being inducted into the Clemson Athletic Hall of Fame, along with the likes of DeAndre Hopkins and Chester McGlockton. There was no way, Bourret said, the Tigers could lose that day. “I felt pretty good. Tim don't talk a lot of trash,” Swinney said. “He was like The Babe, he called his shot.” Bourret couldn’t have picked a better time to mimic Babe Ruth, because the Tigers were experiencing a historic degree of misery in recent weeks. Their six straight home losses to power conference opponents was only matched by a drought from 1970-71. If they’d lost a seventh, the only comparable streak at Clemson would have dated back to Ruth’s time — from 1907-17. But after weeks of misery, Swinney could finally smile postgame after a 24-10 win over FSU. After gut-wrenching losses to LSU, Syracuse, SMU, and Duke, there were good vibes emanating from Clemson’s program again. And that goodness was coming in all direction. Not only did Bourret make his bold prediction before the game, but Swinney received supportive phone calls from coaching colleagues during the week, including one from Deion Sanders and another from Alabama legend Nick Saban. “Listen, if you coach long enough, and you’ve coached long enough,” Saban said, “sooner or later you will have a season like this … but there's opportunity in every situation and I know you'll take advantage of this opportunity.” Saban added, “Let me know if you need anything,” and the Tigers’ coach couldn’t resist a quip as he prepared for the No. 1 yard-producing offense in college football. “Can you come play corner for me this week?” Swinney asked. Obviously, Clemson didn’t need a 74-year-old trying to cover FSU’s receivers as Tommy Castellanos scrambled all over the field. But the Tigers did have another coaching assist. Brent Venables, the Oklahoma head man who was Clemson’s defensive coordinator from 2012-21, was on the Tigers’ sideline again for the FSU game. Only as a fan, though. Venables swapped crimson for gray Clemson attire, supporting his son, Clemson senior safety Tyler Venables, on Oklahoma’s bye week. Swinney couldn’t help but ask the fiery defensive mastermind what FSU was going to call on a second-and-long play. “Probably a screen or draw! Probably a screen or draw!” Swinney barked during his press conference as he imitated Venables’ booming, guttural tones. “I love Brent.” Bourret’s bold proclamation, Saban’s support, and Coach V’s return probably didn’t win the Tigers the game. But they contributed to the poetry of a bounce-back moment. Just a week earlier, it was hard for the Tigers to get out of bed after a 46-45 loss to Duke. Linebacker Wade Woodaz admitted immediately after the game he wasn’t excited to show his face on campus in the coming days. But through the suffering, Clemson found a way to come together. Through their faith. “We all serve a God. We all play for an audience of one,” Woodaz said. “We don’t play for the audience of man.” The night before the FSU game, left tackle Tristan Leigh shared with his teammates a verse from Isaiah, Chapter 6, where God asked “Whom shall I send” and the prophet said “Here I am, send me.” Clemson’s “send me” mentality led the Tigers to stroll into the stadium pregame, per usual, but they just kept walking. Not everyone knew why they were heading onto the field in suits and ties, but they all gathered around the paw logo at midfield and locked arms. Then, they prayed as one, before they played as one for their audience of one. “I’ve had enough challenges in life that it’s taught me you just gotta hang in there. But these are young people,” Swinney said. “I think that’s one of the blessings from this season, a lot of these guys have grown closer to God.” That prayer, according to Woodaz, set the tone for the day. But it was quite the environment in Death Valley, as well. Right before kickoff, Clemson placed lights around the paw’s outline at midfield and dimmed the lights, almost as if the stadium was about to perform a seance to rid itself of whatever demons had taken up residence. Negative feelings were exorcised almost immediately as the Tigers went down the field and scored on their first possession, plus a fake field goal for a two-point conversion — run in by holder Clay Swinney, Dabo’s youngest son. Memorial Stadium was abuzz after a flea-flicker from Adam Randall, to Cade Klubnik, to Antonio Williams — 44 yards down the field made it 15-0. “We're a 3-5 football team and it was sold out. I don't know if it actually sold out, but it looked like it was sold out,” Woodaz said. “They showed up and supported us like we're the No. 1 team in the country. So who wouldn't wanna go leave it all out there for them?” FSU racked up 360 yards, but it was well below the 510 the Seminoles averaged coming into the game. There were plenty of dropped balls and misfired passes from Castellanos that contributed to FSU’s ills, but Swinney wasn’t complaining. For weeks, the Tigers couldn’t catch a break. A few times in this game, they did. For the first time since Oct. 19, 2024, when the Tigers beat Virginia, the fans in Death Valley had a chance to come onto the field postgame and celebrate a win over a power conference team. Swinney had a chance to hold a press conference and talk about all that went right, rather than all that had gone wrong. As much as Swinney felt good about his interactions with Bourret, Saban, and Venables, he seemed most happy to see Clemson’s seniors experience one more night game in winning fashion. “I'm just so happy for them to be able to taste that tonight,” Swinney said. “I know it hasn't been a great season record-wise, but man, I don't care what the records are, it don't ever get old to beat the Noles.”
