Clemson Media Day: Dabo Swinney, pt. 1

be with y'all uh hopefully it's been a good day so far and hopefully y'all get a lot out of this and enjoy this obviously something we've been doing for a long time just to kind of help out the local media here and give y'all a little head start on on uh on things and a little different this year because usually we're going right on into uh Charlotte but but that'll be that'll be next week but uh just a few things for me first of all I've been a good summer I think you know most coaches probably nobody probably come says it's been a terrible summer but it really has truly been a great summer I mean I love the focus of our guys that we've had tremendous leadership all summer these guys have been here the biggest thing that I would say is uh this is the best probably in about um I don't know probably five or six years our accountability uh that's probably probably the best it's been you know we with something we track we have you know our accountability teams and all that and this team I think we have two guys out of 135 that are negative on accountability points and that's that's never been the case and that is a that's you know one of those little internal metrics uh for me that that really gives me an indication of of uh the focus of this group and so I'm excited about that um you know guys are hungry to get back at it to get back on the field and uh you know get back in the fight if you will uh we got a lot of guys back on this team that that got some some very valuable experience last year uh you know a lot of those guys you know a guy like a Wade wood as and Antonio Williams a Nate Wiggins is a first year starter I mean a lot of those guys type of guys Blake Miller a lot of those type of guys on our team that really got a lot of needed experience last year but then we also had a lot of guys choose to stay and play another year you know it's seven seven guys and a bunch of those guys draftable that chose to stay and and uh and play another year here at Clemson all graduates so so that's really exciting and then we've added another you know outstanding uh group of of new recruits so um you know I think the team's in a good spot um they they have put the work in that is necessary uh to give yourself a chance to have a really good year they've put that work in and if they'll stay the course then this team will have an opportunity to to have another excellent year here at Clemson I don't have any doubt about that and and then as far as uh you know health-wise our team is in a good spot right now uh as of right this second um you know we've got uh four guys that are that are Miles Oliver uh uh Bubba mcatee Hampton Earl Trey Williams that that are uh you know kind of mid-camp right after camp but they're all kind of really trending in a good spot on where they need to be to get back for the season at some point and uh so we're in a good spot all those guys that were out of the spring everybody's ready to roll uh so I'm really really pleased with that and then um uh the only only real uh like long-term uh deal that we're dealing with right now is Tyler venables uh he had a little tear in his hip labrum so he had to have that fixed yesterday as a matter of fact so you know it was a decision with him he you know try to play through it and then maybe do it uh after the season or and really it was kind of T-Bone's decision to go ahead and get it done because he's he's kind of which I'm really excited about because he's he's made the decision that he really wants to really use all his eligibility so technically I know it seems like he's been here a long time but he's got he's got three years to play two and he's as you all know that have been around he's battling a lot of injuries he's he had torn hamstrings he had the other hip he's had his shoulder he's had a lot of a lot of uh setbacks but he's such a great player and a valuable guy but he's uh what we're going to try to do with him is is kind of take the long-haul approach and try to red shirt him this year if we can which would be a real positive force you know for next year because it would give us a veteran guy back because we're going to lose some some really uh veteran guys at that position but but our goal is to try to get him back this year at some point and hopefully play kind of the skowski plan those of you remember for that and maybe let him play the last few games of the season and still keep his year and come back next year as a as a red shirt junior or a fifth year senior whatever he wants to do but so that's really the only long-term thing we're dealing with right now and and other than that everybody is back in Camp or really trending you know to to being back you know sooner than later so you know excited about that approach the uh the recent decision by Will Taylor was that much of a surprise for you or did you pretty much know that baseball was huge uh no we no we we talked about that I think we all knew that that long term that was going to be his future but but will um you know it's his he must be a first-round draft pick and and uh you know he really felt like this is what he needed to concentrate on this fall and you know he he's he's I love that kid and hopefully he'll hopefully he'll just come over here and sit around and uh hang out with us some because he's just he's just one of those guys you just love being around and man he wouldn't give anything for the experience that he's gotten I mean this is what he wanted he wanted the college experience and uh you know not many guys have the ability to play one sport much less two and and to be a champion in both Sports to be an ACC champion in football an ACC champion and and uh in baseball and obviously it didn't go necessarily quite according to script it rarely does uh but but you know he he got off to a really good start and was really kind of on his way was that like the fourth game maybe of his freshman year that crazy year of 21 was kind of on his way to really becoming a real factor for us and and got hurt so you know he missed all the spring missed all the summer and then came in last year and toured the end of last year was starting to kind of you know uh hit his stride a little bit and um but this is just kind of where he's at he's in that third year but he's had an amazing experience here at Clemson that's what he wanted and you know I'm excited for him and but definitely definitely the right decision on his part yeah well you know he he was we had the surgery there in the spring and and uh so he's he's doing really good you know we had to fix the shoulder again and I think it was the one from high school we had one here the other one you know at Clemson but they also had one from high school that we had to I think fix that again but he's done well he's had a good summer I mean he's he's close you know and uh you know it's probably probably mid-camp type guy before they probably will release at the earliest there but uh you know and he's another guy he's kind of like Tyler I mean those of you who've been around here y'all know that what we've dealt with the trade I mean he's been he's missed a lot of time but he's still got a lot of time too you know he really has a lot of time on his clock and so you know we've really tried to just kind of hit pause with him a little bit and just slow it down and kind of play the long game with him and let's let's really get him well and let's get those shoulders fortified and and just make sure that that you know he's he's he's ready to go and um he's in a good place like I said he's had a great summer he's he's really running well and hopefully we'll have him you know cleared sooner than later about implementing things I mean no different than hiring anybody else I mean you know we have a structure here that that when you come to Clemson it's just you know you plug into the structure and you perform Your Role we we Empower everybody who comes here uh to do their job with accountability and uh he's been a great fit I mean easy uh it has been an easy transition you know we we uh I think got a lot done in the spring we've got even though we had a lot of guys out we still we got a lot of the infrastructure in and really you know terminology and just um just a little nuances that are that are different but it's been fun it has been fun it's been a lot of fun and kind of a little bit of a reset if you will um some procedural things and systematic things but the biggest thing is it's just I just really feel a reinstill confidence and you know sometimes you know that's you have to have a different voice from time to time you know um doesn't always say it doesn't have to we don't necessarily have to be the best but we got to believe it's the best you know and uh that's a big part of it and I just think that these guys uh have have kind of regain their confidence in in what we're doing and and how we do it and why and and it's carried over into the summer you know but got to go do it got to go do it uh during the season but it's it's all good uh but it'll get real Labor Day night well that's probably a word that would I would say for sure I mean I think that anytime you do something you get you get better as you go and you know he did a great job for us I know I knew he was going to I hired him because I I really believe in him and and uh you know he's got a great future for sure in this profession and uh you know he's just like just like when I hire Tony Elliott you know the call plays that that first year and he'd never done it uh and we went all the way to the national championship and we came back in 16 he was even better right uh you know he was more comfortable same thing and it's the same thing with with uh with Wes you just just get better no different from me being a head coach I'm I try to get better every year and I'm definitely better now than I was uh last year and 10 years ago and so forth and it's the same thing with Wes so he's just he the staff's in a really good place you know last year we had some new pieces that we were pulling together and you know they all work really really well together and um you know now that he's gained that experience I think he's very confident and you learn and grow but you know we all know what we've got to do to to take another step we took a good step forward last year as a team and got back on top of this league and uh you know we but we have more that we want to do and we came up a little short in a couple of those areas and we all know what we got to do to to kind of kind of take that next step as we build back to the top of the mountain okay told in a second spring game that transformation summer was going to be the biggest thing for him and he couldn't wait to as he could lead his team in the summer workouts what have you seen and heard from him you know since the spring well first of all it's been a great year and some change you know for him he's he he's everything you could want in a quarterback I mean he's incredibly skilled he's a natural leader he's a gym rat he's got high aptitude he's and then you know just obviously the skill sets the accuracy and all those things but he's he's he physically has has come a long way I mean he's about 179 pounds when he got here I think he's I think he was 203 or 204 uh the other day when I looked at it so he's just in a really good place physically and now uh he's got a year of experience under his belt and he's had some success he's had he's had some uh disappointment too and and he understands you know what game planning was like how we practice you know how we get ready all those he's just got a different vision for it and when you have that very clear vision of what's coming it's easier to prepare for it you know as opposed to when it's the first time everything's the first time you know it's it's I think a little more of a challenge there but he's uh he's off and running he's had a great summer like I said he's he's a gym race here all the time and he is he's a very natural leader the guys respond to him and you know he's he's he's no question uh you know a guy that I think has a chance to to be a a great great player not only in this league but but you know in the country and so I just got to go do it y'all obviously have a great running back hand and then Chipley a companies where you and what you saw from Thomas and Adam was in Spring provides a little depth there uh really please you know Dominique uh you know we're super I'm actually gonna be able to keep him on scholarships so that's good uh that's kind of that's kind of a positive for for him it worked out that way but you know he's a he's a really he's a really good player he's different he's a he's different but he's he's a good football player and we're thankful to have him and then you know Keith as y'all heard me say many times is a sledgehammer I mean he's just things get broken uh when he's out there I mean he's just a train wreck every time and it's uh you know just a violent Runner uh it's the best way I can describe him and he's still learning a lot but but I mean he took some steps I mean he's a he's a good player I mean we got a good group and then obviously went and signed a couple guys that um I think really deep in that room and uh and then I went and got a guy named James Davis too to come back so we got we got a it's a pretty good running back meeting room uh for sure so and you got two guys whose pictures are on the wall you know leading the room that's pretty cool in there so it's a lot of fun but I am happy about James coming back he's you know coming back to finish school and uh you know something I think he's been wanting to do for a while and it's just kind of the right time for him and where he is in life to to kind of fulfill that and check that box and so I'm really happy for him to come back and be able to experience you know what he was a part of building here but we got good good group good room it's okay just what you said I I stay Purpose Driven you know I'm not outcome driven I'm not expectation driven I'm Purpose Driven and and relationship driven so I just stay focused on the main thing and I love what I do I mean I I love what I do I love where I do it I love who I do it with and so it's it's it's I mean I love I love coaching football I love putting a team together I love competing um you know I love planning I love preparing I love practice so I mean this is uh this is actually my favorite time of year you know when we get ready to get back to this point and now we start you know getting on the practice field with the guys and you get to be with them every day I mean this is this is this is this is a really fun time of year but you know so you're 21 for me at Clemson and uh it's my 15th as the head coach and I mean time flies when you're having fun as they say and I've had a ton of fun it's been a blast um you know we've had 12 really good years in a row and and some of them great years and I think this team uh has a chance to to have another excellent year around here and I love that challenge but you know you got to fall in love with the mundane you got to fall in love with the routine you know that can't ever get old uh because that's ultimately what you fall back on that's what you got to love you know and that's that's what those are the things that I appreciate more and more as the years go by for sure but just stay focused on the purpose of what we're all about here you know I mean you know he's I mean he's not a tall guy but he's not short either I mean but he's got he's got a good stature to him he's really a lot like Cade you know I mean obviously he he you know had to come in and really play uh heavy snaps for us as a freshman and made freshman All-American and said has set him up himself up for a great second year and uh you know he's the same thing as Kate he's just physically in a different place he's mentally in a different place he really has a different understanding I think I thought he hit a wall a little bit last year and then he then it kind of you know came on and found himself again because it's hard but now going through that second season the off season because you know he he wasn't here for um spring last summer he was a summer enrollee I'm pretty sure that's right and so you know I'm just it's amazing how far he's developed I mean you look at him he's thicker he's bigger faster stronger and that's what should happen if you're putting the work in and he's done a lot of a lot of work to put himself in position to have a good sophomore surge instead of a sophomore slump as they like to say we expect great things from him I mean he's he's a he's an outstanding player I guess with uh Tyler venables out does that open up opportunity yeah yeah absolutely I mean you know obviously we got mickens and makuba and JP you know kind of starts there but but you know Kobo and Khalil and and Colin Webb and Colin Griffin uh kid that we're really excited about I mean we got a good Robert Billings who just showed up hadn't even had a chance to put my eyes on him yet on the field I mean we got a got a good group of guys and um you know a lot a lot a lot of moving Parts back there that are different from where we're the last year and at the end of the day that's the you know that's the most important thing we got we got to be got to be better throwing and catching and we got to be better defending the pass and if we do those two things and then I think we take another step this year confirm about scholarships you're down to the 85 now with those three departments we're actually we're actually at 85 I got one left uh you know we were I know everybody likes to write about that uh but we never not have a plan we were at 87 with the two Walk-Ons we had put casperson our starting Snapper uh who who has done a great job for us we put him on and we put Dominique on and uh and Helms on last year so you know Helms we we kept him on and then so we were at 87 and when Greg decided to to you know move on to other things and then with Will that allows us for sure to keep Dominique on and then we'll go through camp and we've got one left and we'll see because we got two Snappers I got casperson I got florenzo both those guys do a great job and so you know we'll see what happens between now and when school starts but um so we're we're at our number and in a good spot we talked about your accountability numbers at the top is that and the culture you develop here what keeps you know terrible things like The Hazing at Northwestern or you know the gambling issues that Alabama's baseball coach it keeps you keeps them away from this program well I mean listen there's no there's no anywhere there's people you have stupid things happen from time to time or bad things right I mean that's just the way it is but I think I think it's how you respond to those things that separates places and homes and companies and all those things so we're certainly not immune to anything you know bad out there but I but yes uh you know I think our the way we've done things for a long time are our you know staff and and the relationships with our players and all those type of things and really just how we're set up organizationally from a communication standpoint usually when something happens it's it's we're very proactive and and we hear about it you know prior to it becoming some some but if it's something public we usually already know about it uh so again I think that's just organizationally you know how we're structured but there's no one out there immune to something bad happening I think the biggest thing again is how do you respond to those things what are your processes in place and so forth um you know to deal with an issue from time to time that's great

Channel: ClemsonTigerNet

Views: 6,561

Keywords: Clemson, Football, Recruiting, TigerNet, Sports, Basketball, Baseball

Id: XIHybbtjCRA

Length: 21min 16sec (1276 seconds)

Published: Tue Jul 18 2023