Dabo Swinney is an optimist.

Clemson’s head football coach always looks for the positive in everything, and with his level of success on and off the football field, who is going to question his outlook on things.

So, when Swinney says he already has “a team” after just one game, a game in which the top-ranked Tigers blew the doors off Georgia Tech, then you know the Tigers have a team.

“We have a good group of guys who like each other, that support each other,” he said. “It is so much fun to see guys get excited for other guys’ success and opportunities to play. I think that is awesome. I think we have been able to develop that chemistry that I felt like we were going to have to have coming out of camp. I think that was important.”

Clemson did not play a perfect game in its win over the Yellow Jackets and Swinney will be the first person to tell you the same thing. The Tigers turned the football over three times. They had too many penalties, there were missed assignments, bad technique at times and missed tackles.

But those are good things, too. Swinney and his staff can coach off of those mistakes.

“We are talented. We are a young, but a talented team and a team that is just going to get better,” he said. “So, as far as just one game, I think we have a team that was focused. A team that was really excited and ready to go play. Those are all real positive things.

“It was just one game and we dominated the game but made enough mistakes to teach off of and a lot of things to correct. There were a lot of guys that did not grade a winner that are going to be disappointed with a few technical things when we really go over that with them.”

The thing Swinney likes the most about this year’s team is their attitude. He feels he has a group of young men who will respond to coaching and will respond to constructive criticism. Last Thursday’s game was a perfect example.

“We got put into some bad situations with some turnovers and to see our team respond was really good to see,” he said.

Now Swinney will see how his team will respond in Week 2. It will not be an easy task. The Tigers host No. 12 Texas A&M Saturday at 3:30 p.m.

It was in this game a year ago when Swinney discovered what kind of team he had last season. This year’s game will probably go along way in telling him a little more about this team.

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