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Dabo Swinney delivered a passionate response to a fan critical of Clemson’s subpar start.
During his radio call-in show, a Tigers fan named Tyler asked Swinney why he was getting paid $11.5 million to lead a 4-4 team. He questioned the head coach’s dedication and drive after leading Clemson to a second national championship in 2018.
“But after that 2018 national title, something changed,” Tyler claimed. “There seems to be a lot of arrogance.”
After over two minutes, Swinney finally had “enough” and cut off Tyler before unleashing a fiery defense. Here’s the full audio, courtesy of CFB Kings:
Dabo Swinney gets fired up on his radio call-in show after obnoxious caller asks how he has a $10.5 million salary, calls him arrogant, insults his coaching hires, and compares him to former Clemson HC Tommy Bowden. pic.twitter.com/pfu164e49l
— CFB Kings (@CFBKings) October 31, 2023
Swinney claimed that expectations for the Clemson program are “greater than the appreciation.” He noted that he’s led the team to at least 10 wins in 12 straight seasons and two national titles in the last decade after a 35-year drought.
“Listen man, you can have your opinion all you want, and you can apply for the job. Good luck to you,” Swinney said. “But to answer your question, we’re second in draft picks. We graduated 98 percent of our guys. We’re second in wins.”
He took full responsibility for Clemson’s rough 2023 but called Tyler “part of the problem” for bringing out the pitchforks the moment the team faltered.
“Now even when you win, people like you complain and criticize the coaches and question the coaches. … People like you who just love to destroy people with your comments,” Swinney said. “I’m sure you’ve never made any bad decisions. I’m sure you lived a perfect life.”
Swinney said he started as “the lowest paid coach in this fricken business” and got to his current position because he “worked my ass off every single day.”
“I ain’t gonna let some smart-ass kid get on this phone and create this stuff,” he said. “So if you got a problem with that, I don’t care. I work for the Board of Trustees, the president, and the AD. And if they’re tired of me leading this program, all they got to do is let me know.”