Dabo Swinney addressed Monday night’s already infamous exchange with a radio caller.
Clemson’s head coach fielded a call from Tyler, a frustrated fan who wanted to know why Swinney is getting paid $11.5 million to lead a 4-4 football team. The caller cited the Bible before accusing the coach of acting arrogantly since winning a second national title in 2018.
Swinney called Tyler “part of the problem” and said he wasn’t going to let “some smart-ass kid” besmirch his reputation.
During Tuesday’s press conference, Swinney summed up the radio interaction. He seemed proud of his latest retort.
“I had some idiot try to give me the Old Testament and he got an Old Testament answer,” Swinney said, via The State’s Chapel Fowler. “Y’all print that one.”
On last night’s call from Tyler from Spartanburg, Dabo Swinney says: “I had some idiot try to give me the Old Testament and he got an Old Testament answer. Y’all print that one” Says he’s always gonna fight for his program. “That’s why most coaches don’t take calls (live)”
— Chapel Fowler (@chapelfowler) October 31, 2023
Swinney had another message for anyone critical of how he handled the situation.
“Some people say I’m stubborn,” he said. “I say I’m convicted in my beliefs.”
Dabo Swinney: “Some people say I’m stubborn. I say I’m convicted in my beliefs”
— Chapel Fowler (@chapelfowler) October 31, 2023
As Swinney noted during Monday night’s defense, Clemson has at least 10 wins in each of the last 12 seasons. On Tuesday, he claimed 2010 was the last time the program experienced any “real football adversity.”
He said the team remains on an “amazing journey” and compared it to a tree that must be pruned to yield better fruit.
“Hopefully people realize again how hard it is to win. … “What this season will do is produce some healthy fruit. Sit back and watch what God does.”
Despite calling the fan an idiot, Swinney also tried to show some compassion.
“I’m sure Tyler is a great guy and he just had a bad day, he said, per The Post and Courier’s Jon Blau. “We all have bad days.”