During his weekly press conference Tuesday, Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney addressed his comments about Clemson being a developmental program.

When asked to clarify his radio show comments Monday night that Clemson will “always be a developmental team” as long as he is the head coach, Swinney explained Tuesday, “whoever we bring in here, we’ve got to get them better.”

Swinney used specific player examples, pointing to developmental growth that’s necessary for both incoming transfers (like cornerbacks Donovan Starr and Elliot Washington) and true freshmen (like quarterback Tait Reynolds).

“We’ve got to develop them,” Swinney said. “You sign a high school kid, you sign a portal kid – like, we signed Donovan Starr. He’s a freshman. We’ve gotta develop him. We signed Elliot Washington. He’s a senior. He hasn’t played. He had one start in his career. He ain’t played no football. He’s played the most football of his whole career right here at Clemson in six ball games. But we’ve got to develop him. And then you get Tait Reynolds, who’s a freshman. We’ve got to develop him.

“So, whoever you got, however you get ‘em, you’ve got to develop these guys, and that’s the main thing. And the other part of being a developmental program – as long as we can recruit the best high school kids that we think are our guys, that’s where it starts for us. And then you’ve got to fill it in with the portal guys as you go along, as those needs are either opened up, or created in some form or fashion.”

On Tuesday, Swinney also responded to critics of Clemson’s roster construction.

As you know, Swinney has been heavily criticized for some of his roster-building decisions – for example, not adding any offensive linemen through the transfer portal this past offseason, or an experienced portal quarterback.

Of course, critics also argue that Swinney’s heavy reliance on high school recruiting and player development rather than aggressively using the transfer portal has left Clemson behind in the modern college football era.

A reporter asked Swinney, “You know what people think, though, when you say you’re a developmental program? People think, you know, Swinney’s still stuck in his old ways.”

“Ain’t no players coming here for free. They don’t go anywhere for free. So, it doesn’t matter who you get. But I don’t really care what people say,” Swinney responded. “I really don’t. I really don’t. I don’t consume it. I can’t control what people say. I don’t consume it. I control that. So, I just focus on doing my best every day for Clemson.”

Swinney, now in his 19th season (and 18th full season) as Clemson’s head coach, says he has been giving Clemson everything he has since he joined the program’s staff as wide receivers coach prior to the 2003 season.

“I’ve done that for 24 years. I’ve come to work here and I’ve given my entire heart and soul every day to this community, this university, to these players, for 24 years, and that ain’t going to change,” Swinney said.

“I’m going to do my best every single day to do what I think is best for Clemson and to have a great program. Not just a great year — a great program – and that’s what we have. We’ve got an amazing program here, and that’s what I focus on. We’ve got great kids. I’m having a great time coaching these guys. I love our staff.”

Swinney, who has led the Tigers to nine ACC titles, seven College Football Playoff appearances and two national titles, pointed to his track record and added that his program has “made more good decisions than bad over the years.”

“What we’ve done here is won for a long time. Just won,” Swinney said. “We’re trying to build our way back to the top. You don’t get to stay there. We were just there the year before last [CFP appearance during the 2024 season]. We’ve been to the top of this mountain in this league nine times, and we’re trying to build our way back, one day at a time. One play at a time, one offseason at a time – we’re just building our way back.

“I wish we could win it every single year, but I don’t know of anybody that’s done that. But we’ve won it more than most. So, we’ve made more good decisions than bad over the years.”