Associated PressCLEMSON, S.C. ó A reworked offense coached by new assistants, a freshman quarterback making his first start and the offense’s most dynamic star out with a hamstring pull.
New Clemson coach Dabo Swinney should have plenty to worry about for his first game today. But first on his list?
“That’s running down that hill and making sure I get down the hill and don’t fall,” Swinney said of Clemson’s traditional entrance into Death Valley.
Swinney will try to bring that enthusiasm to the Tigers, who cap a turbulent week when they play Georgia Tech today.
Swinney was Clemson’s receivers coach until he was tapped Monday to take over for Tommy Bowden, who stepped down amid the Tigers’ disappointing season.
The anticipated Atlantic Coast Conference champions, Clemson (3-3, 1-2 ACC) had fallen flat in Bowden’s 10th season. The dissatisfaction that began in August with the ninth-ranked Tigers’ embarrassing 34-10 loss to Alabama turned to full-blown revolution in their last two games. Clemson managed just 7 points in its last six quarters during losses to Maryland and Wake Forest.
Enter “Coach Dabo,” a 38-year-old college football lifer who played on Alabama’s 1992 national championship team and later coached for the Crimson Tide until 2000.
Swinney is working to calm his players’ frayed nerves and build fan support.