By : Sabri Haidar
(Photo/Sabri Haidar- The Mojo Network)
Through two weeks, No. 11 Clemson sits at 1-1 after a season-opening loss to No. 4 LSU and a sluggish win over Troy. For Swinney, the script feels eerily familiar. Back in 2016, Clemson also opened against an SEC opponent in Auburn before narrowly surviving Troy the following week.
“I went back and pulled up my notes from 2016 after the Troy game,” Swinney said on Sept. 9. “It was like I could’ve just erased the names and read the same message to the team.”
History Repeating Itself
The similarities don’t stop there. That 2016 group, coming off a national title game loss to Alabama, entered the year with championship expectations, led by star quarterback Deshaun Watson. They beat Auburn in a low-scoring battle and edged Troy 30-24 before heading into ACC play against Georgia Tech — the same team Clemson will face Thursday (Sept. 13, noon ET, ESPN) at Bobby Dodd Stadium.
This season’s Tigers are in a comparable spot. After a 10–4 campaign in 2024, they returned more production than any other FBS program, including quarterback Cade Klubnik, who blossomed into a Heisman hopeful last fall. His top three receivers and four starting offensive linemen are back, fueling preseason talk of Clemson being both an ACC and national title contender.
But two weeks in, the results haven’t matched the hype. The Tigers scored only 10 points in their opener against LSU, then stumbled through a sloppy first half versus Troy, trailing 16-3 before rallying late.
Swinney on Expectations and “Poison”
Swinney compared the current team’s situation to the “rat poison” label once coined by former Alabama coach Nick Saban — the idea that media praise can make a team lose focus.
“In 2016, that was the first time we had to deal with the rat poison,” Swinney said. “This group hasn’t had rat poison — they’ve had more of the ‘you’re not good enough’ poison.”
Still, he believes handling expectations is part of Clemson’s challenge. After missing the College Football Playoff for three straight seasons before 2024, the Tigers now find themselves back in the spotlight, and Swinney doesn’t think they’ve handled the weight of that attention as well as his 2016 team did.
Back then, the Tigers’ inconsistency eventually led to a stunning home loss to Pitt, a stumble that nearly derailed their playoff hopes. Swinney says this year’s team has to take those lessons to heart.
What Needs Fixing
The head coach pointed to offensive execution as the main issue. Timing on throws, receivers finishing catches, and all 11 players carrying out their assignments are the basics Clemson has to sharpen. Swinney added that those mistakes haven’t been a problem in practice but keep surfacing in live games.
“Our special teams were supposed to be awful, and our offense was supposed to be unstoppable,” Swinney said. “Right now, it’s the little things — routine stuff — that’s holding us back.”
A Familiar Hope
The 2016 season ended with Clemson hoisting the national championship trophy despite early bumps. That remains the light at the end of the tunnel for this year’s squad, though they know improvement is essential.
Wide receiver Tyler Brown put it simply: “We’ve been locked in all camp, all practice. Now we just got to carry that over to Saturdays.”