Clemson's Dabo Swinney Speaks About Early Season College Football Upsets

Dabo Swinney has Clemson ready to go against below-average opponents, unlike some head coaches in college football.

Sep 21, 2024; Clemson, South Carolina, USA; Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney speaks after a game against the North Carolina Wolfpack at Memorial Stadium. / Ken Ruinard-Imagn Images

Outside of their loss to Georgia in their first game of the season, Clemson has played excellent football.

Some doubters have continued to say that the Bulldogs were Clemson's only real test, which isn't necessarily wrong, but it's also important to look around college football and see all the upsets throughout the first month and a half of the year.

There's a reason why programs are losing to teams they shouldn't, primarily due to how competitive the transfer portal has made college sports.

But for Clemson, it's also fair to acknowledge that, while they haven't beaten a top-10 team, they've also taken care of business in games they've needed to win. Not many teams around the college football world can currently say that.

Head coach Dabo Swinney talked about some of the upsets that took place over the weekend, highlighting how no win is ever guaranteed.

"I couldn't believe it. I didn't know anything about any of that, until I got into the locker room," Swinney said Tuesday, according to Derrian Carter of Greenville News. "College football did us a favor because this is a week where if you pay attention to what people say on the outside, they're gonna be saying, 'Hey, we're supposed to go win.'

"This ain't a game of supposed to. This is a game of what you do. It's a game of performance, and that's why I think we've been really consistent. We've created that windshield mentality for years."

Clemson proved Swinney's words right in their win against Florida State.

The Seminoles, typically one of the top college football programs in the nation year in and year out, have struggled mightily. Florida State was 1-4 entering the contest, but if the Tigers hadn't come out ready to play, there was a good chance they would've lost that game.

Instead, Swinney had his guys ready to go, and the results showed.

"You've got to show up and play every single week, and that's why we talk about playing to a standard. You don't play to an opponent, to a record. Like last week, (Florida State) was 1-4, and you get caught up in that, you're getting beat. …

Clemson must keep that mentality moving forward. Outside of their game against Pittsburgh, there aren't many teams on their schedule that should be on the same field as them.

However, if they have that mentality, there's a good chance they'll drop another game and effectively fall out of the College Football Playoff picture.