CLEMSON — Dabo Swinney and Brad Brownell are pretty good friends.

Each year, the two Clemson coaches tour the state of South Carolina speaking to IPTAY donors, while shaking hands, kissing babies and eating a lot of rubber chicken. They also join each other for the ACC’s Spring Meetings down in Amelia Island, Fla.

In other words, they spend a lot of time together in the Spring. You might think during that six -week window the two have learned a lot from each other, as both coaches and men.

And they have.

That’s why it is a head scratcher Swinney has not looked at Brownell’s blueprint on how to recruit through the transfer portal.

Brownell is a genius in how he uses the portal to his advantage. Going back to his first Sweet 16 Appearance in 2018, he has added some key pieces through the portal.

Through the years, Brownell has been able to get big-time talent like Shelton Mitchell, Marcquise Reed and Elijah Thomas. He did that when the transfer portal was not really known as the transfer portal.

He also pulled others like Jonathan Baehre, Brevin Galloway, Joseph Girard, Jack Clark, Jaeden Zackery and Viktor Lakhin in recent years.

As a result, Clemson has recorded five 20-win seasons since 2018, including each of the last three years. The program has advanced to The Sweet 16, twice and The Elite 8, once. Three times the Tigers have finished in the top three of the ACC, while last year’s squad tied the program record for most wins in a season (27).

Clemson has also made four NCAA Tournament appearances during this stretch.

Fans and media alike have wondered if Brownell could keep up with the expectations after losing all but three of his players from last year’s NCAA Tournament team, which set an ACC record for wins with 18.

What did Brownell and his coaches do, they went out and attacked the portal. They were aggressive, as they pulled RJ Godfrey, Carter Welling, Jestin Porter, Jake Wahln and Nick Davidson.

But it has not just been the portal. Brownell has brought in talent from the high school ranks that he and his coaches have developed, players such as Amir Simms, Hunter Tyson, P.J. Hall, Chase Hunter, Dillon Hunter and Ian Schieffelin.

This year, guys he recruited such as Ace Buckner and Zac Foster, along with the transfers, have helped the Tigers jump out to a 6-1 start, which includes wins over West Virginia and Georgia in this past weekend’s Charleston Classic.

The proof is in the pudding.

Brownell has found a way to win consistently by using both the transfer portal and high school recruiting, while not disturbing the culture he has created inside the program.

Clemson basketball has laid out a blueprint for success in this modern era of collegiate athletics. Now it’s time for Swinney and the Clemson football program to follow it, so next year the program is not sitting here at 6-5 or even worse.