Clemson Takes Another Huge Loss; Is Head Coach Dabo Swinney In Trouble?
Cade Klubnik has just three passing touchdowns against three interceptions in disappointing start
PublishedSeptember 13, 2025 6:55 PM EDT•UpdatedSeptember 13, 2025 6:47 PM EDT
The Clemson Tigers entered 2025 with high expectations after another College Football Playoff appearance in 2024. Returning starting quarterback Cade Klubnik, head coach Dabo Swinney, and a host of blue-chip high school recruits led Associated Press Poll voters to put Clemson at No. 4 in the preseason poll.
Fast-forward a few weeks, and the Tigers are 1-2 and facing an extremely uphill battle to make it back to the playoff.
Clemson losing a week one matchup against LSU. Sure, that happens. But then the Tigers struggled mightily against an overmatched Troy team, falling behind 16-3 at halftime. They came back to win 27-16, but the result didn't inspire confidence. Neither will Saturday's game against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets.
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Again, Clemson fell behind early, with Georgia Tech jumping out to a 13-0 lead, that became 13-7 at halftime. Still, the Tigers came back yet again, taking a thin 14-13 lead. After yet another Yellow Jackets touchdown and two-point conversion, Klubnik led a scoring drive with just over 3 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter to tie it 21-21. Then disaster struck, with GA Tech kicker Aidan Birr making a 55-yard field goal as time expired.
This raises the all-important question - where do the Tigers go from here?
Clemson Tigers head coach Dabo Swinney prepares to run on the field with his team before a game against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets at Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field on Sept. 13, 2025 in Atlanta. Photo: Brett Davis-Imagn Images
Clemson Has Serious Problems, And Dabo Swinney's Strategy Might Need To ChangeKlubnik, despite a great 2024 season, has struggled in 2025. Through three games, he has just three passing touchdowns against three interceptions. He's completed 52 of 88 passes, just a 59 percent completion percentage. That's not good enough, especially with two of his games coming against Troy and Georgia Tech.
The Tigers' defense too has been underwhelming; Saturday's performance wasn't a complete disaster, but Tech had 365 yards on offense to 381 for Clemson. They were outgained 354-261 by LSU. Heck, they barely outgained Troy, 316-301.
It's just…not good. In any phase of the game.
Clemson could recover, win the rest of the games on its schedule, including an ACC Championship Game, and return to the playoff. But with Florida State and South Carolina looming, that's far from a certainty.
So if the Tigers finish 9-3, or 8-4, or even worse, does it become time for Swinney to rethink his disdain of the transfer portal? Is there more pressure to revamp the offense, or make other substantive changes? It might be.
Saturday's loss also highlights the absurdity of preseason polls. Clemson, by most analytical ranking systems, was nowhere close to the No. 4 team in the country. But because AP Poll voters loved them, LSU gets credit for a top-5 win. Clemson's sure to fall out of the top 25 this week, but will LSU see its rankings fall because that Clemson win looks a lot less impressive? Of course not. Regardless of the rankings, Clemson as a team sure looks a lot less impressive now.