Dabo Swinney’s football program at Clemson appears to be at a crossroads.

While the Tigers have absolutely reached unprecedented heights during the Swinney era, including winning two national titles, the program has slipped over the past few years. There has been just one College Football Playoff appearance in the past five seasons, that coming in 2024, when the Tigers were beaten by double digits in the opening round at Texas.

Last year was supposed to be the season in which Swinney would have his program back among the nation’s best. Clemson came into the season ranked inside the Top 5, with some even predicting a national title run.

Clemson did not come close to meeting those expectations, starting the season 1-3. The Tigers did get off the mat and win five of the final seven regular-season games, before laying an egg against Penn State in the Pinstripe Bowl to finish 7-6. It was Swinney’s worst season since 2010, his second as the full-time head coach.

Clemson had nine players selected from last year’s team in the most recent NFL Draft, with all nine going in the first five rounds. No matter the results of the 2025 season, that is a lot of experience to replace in one offseason. Coming off the disappointing season and with so much turnover on the roster, many in the national media have written the Tigers off.

However, there is one analyst who thinks Clemson could surprise some people in 2026, with Josh Pate noting that Swinney has done some of his best work when his teams are overlooked.

“It’s the year after they were expected to be something last year and they weren’t,” the national analyst recently said. “And now they lost a lot of guys to the draft, which he would describe the roster as a bunch of nobodies.”

“They’ve been forgotten. That is Dabo Swinney’s sweet spot.”

No matter what happens once the season kicks off on September 5 against LSU in Baton Rouge, Pate insists Swinney’s legacy at Clemson is safe. Along with the two national championships, Swinney has guided the Tigers to seven playoff appearances and nine conference championships. He is 187-53 all-time, making him the winningest coach in program history. He is also the winningest coach in ACC history, surpassing the legendary Bobby Bowden in 2024.

Swinney has completely changed the way Clemson is viewed on the national landscape, and Pate maintains he’s already secured icon status.

“He is Clemson football,” Pate said. “He totally redefined what the Tiger Paw means, and so, he’s an icon. He is a legend.”