Dabo Swinney believes his Clemson was close this season.

Despite the disappointing loss to Texas in the first round of the College Football Playoff, the head coach saw a lot of positives his team can build on for next season, beginning with the incredible fight shown in the second half after getting down 28-10.

Swinney saw his Tigers pull to within one score at one point, but they just weren’t able to come all the way back.

“We will build on this,” Swinney said after the game. “It’s a great experience for our guys. They know they’re good enough. Most of our team is back.”

One of the brightest spots was the play of quarterback Cade Klubnik. The junior finished 26-of-43 for 336 yards. 219 of those passing yards came in the second half, when Klubnik really found his groove.

He also added three touchdown passes against a Longhorns defense that had allowed just four all season.

“You saw the heart of our quarterback, how about that guy,” Klubnik said. “Just incredible, incredible leadership in the locker room. I wish everybody could experience what I just experienced in the locker room, the leadership of our guys. How much they love each other. It’s pretty special. Again it stinks, but we’ll build on this.”

At the same time, there were some glaring issues that still need to be addressed in the offseason. The defense once again couldn’t stop the run, as Texas rushed for 292 yards and more than six yards per carry.

However, Swinney insists his team will learn from what happened in Austin and that it will grow from the experience. What he saw in the locker room after the defeat leads him to believe that is exactly what will happen and the result will be another trip back to the College Football Playoff.

“This will be just another step in the direction that we want to go to get back to the top of the mountain,” Swinney said. “You’ve got to put yourself in position. We did that. You’ve got to learn and grow, we’ll do that. The example that was set by these seniors, again listening to them all year, all year reading their comments, it’s been amazing. I promise you, the example that they set for these guys coming back, it will not be wasted. Those guys will build upon that. I’ve already seen that in the locker room.”

A limited number of signed replica road signs from Cade Klubnik are available!  Visit Clemson Variety & Frame or purchase online!