Duke shocked then-No. 9 Clemson on Monday night, handing the Tigers an upset, 28-7 loss in the season opener for both teams at Wallace Wade Stadium in Durham.
Dabo Swinney’s team entered this season with College Football Playoff and national championship aspirations after missing the playoff in each of the last two years, following the run of six straight playoff berths from 2015-20 during which the Tigers won national titles in 2016 and 2018.
On Tuesday, ESPN’s Paul Finebaum weighed in on whether Clemson’s era of dominance under Swinney is over.
“Dabo’s dynasty is done. What else can anyone say?” Finebaum said on ESPN’s Get Up show. “It’s really been teetering for a couple of years. But what happened last night is simply unexplainable. This is now the third loss out of the last four games for Clemson, and quite frankly, I don’t see any upside.”
Monday night was the much-anticipated debut of Clemson’s offense in its first game with new coordinator Garrett Riley. Unfortunately for the Tigers, they were plagued by costly mistakes including turnovers, turnovers on downs and blocked field goals, and managed to score only one touchdown despite totaling over 400 yards.
The seven points scored are the fewest in a game vs. an unranked opponent under Swinney.
In his first regular-season start, sophomore quarterback Cade Klubnik completed 27-of-43 passes for 209 yards with one touchdown pass and an interception.
“They brought in Garrett Riley. That was supposed to be the savior,” Finebaum said. “They had the quarterback that was going to be Trevor Lawrence’s wunderkind, and frankly, nothing happened. And they didn’t lose to a Florida State or a Notre Dame or an Alabama or a Georgia. They lost to Duke, which has a very good quarterback, a nice program – nice being the operative word. They have nowhere to go, and Dabo’s nonsense after the game isn’t going to impress anyone. This program is flatlining right now.”
Finebaum expounded on what he meant by “Dabo’s nonsense,” saying that “what was nonsense is Dabo speak.”
“This is an old trick of his,” Finebaum said. “It used to work. It’s not working anymore. It’s not resonating in that locker room, and those players right now, I think, are just looking at him and going, OK, try a different act, Dabo. We’ve heard this one before.”
Dear Old Clemson has just added Limited Edition signed Cade Klubnik replica road signs to the online store. Get your highway 2 sign today while supplies last!