Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney spent 28 minutes breaking down his team’s 28–14 Palmetto Bowl victory over South Carolina, offering extensive thoughts on the Tigers’ performance, the Gamecocks’ fight, and the emotional significance of the rivalry.
Opening Thoughts on the Win
Swinney began by saying the latest rivalry win felt like classic Clemson football again.
“All right. Man, just that’s that was Clemson football. That was fun, a lot of fun,” he said, emphasizing how meaningful the victory was for fans and especially senior players who finished undefeated in Columbia.
He highlighted Clemson’s streak of success: four straight road wins, four consecutive victories overall, and six straight Palmetto Bowl wins at Williams-Brice, joking about the “six, seven” coincidence with the week number.
Swinney praised his team’s resilience during a turnaround season:
“I love just the effort of our guys, the belief of our guys… now we put ourselves in position to get to the postseason and try to get an eighth win.”
While Clemson didn’t meet its preseason goals, Swinney noted that only Alabama and Georgia have also put together 15 straight eight-win seasons. He framed this year’s group as one of Clemson’s most remarkable comeback teams.
Respect for South Carolina
Swinney made a point to defend the Gamecocks, calling them dangerous despite their record.
“[South Carolina is] a good football team. I mean, they should have beat Alabama… that’s a really dangerous football team that we just beat.”
He also expressed sympathy for Shane Beamer:
“My heart hurts for him and Emily and his family… this is a tough, tough game to come out on the short side of it.”
And he reminded reporters of Clemson’s dominance in the rivalry:
“That’s nine out of 11… and that’s six in a row down here.”
Offensive Highlights
Swinney praised Clemson’s efficiency, particularly quarterback Cade Klubnik and a long list of playmakers:
“Cade… had a heck of a game… he made some big-time plays.”
He pointed out strong performances from Adam Randall, TJ Moore, Antonio Williams, Cole Turner, Christian Bentancur, and others. He also underscored how well the offensive line held up:
“I think we only had one sack for one yard against one of the best fronts that we’ve seen all year.”
Special Teams & Defensive Dominance
Swinney gave major credit to Clemson’s special teams and especially its defense, which he considered the deciding factor.
“Story of the game was defense in the second half.”
He listed Clemson’s three interceptions, fumbles created by Avieon Terrell and Ronan Hanafin, and a five-sack performance—highlighted by TJ Parker tying the rivalry record with three sacks.
He was especially proud of holding LaNorris Sellers to virtually no impact on the ground:
“Colin Sadler had the same amount of receiving yards that [LaNorris] Sellers had rushing… that is unbelievable effort by our defense.”
And despite the mistakes on two explosive South Carolina plays, he felt Clemson controlled the game:
“Outside of that, we really… controlled the game defensively.”
On Wade Woodaz’s Huge Tackle
Swinney called Woodaz’s open-field stop on Sellers “huge,” noting the importance of such plays in stopping a dual-threat quarterback who had haunted Clemson on film:
“We all have lived that nightmare over and over… especially getting ready for this game.”
On the Emotional Weight of the Win
Reflecting on how this victory compares to his first Palmetto Bowl win as interim coach 17 years ago, he admitted:
“Yep. Yep. Special. Especially how last year went.”
Swinney said he has always treated his job like he’s on a one-year contract:
“I’m far from perfect, but I do give my best all the time.”
He stressed that while Clemson isn’t a championship team this season, the bond with his players remains unchanged.
On the Trophy Moment
When asked why he stopped his team from taking a photo with the trophy on the field, he clarified it wasn’t about disrespect:
“They just want to take a picture… I just didn’t want anybody out there.”
Message to Impatient Gamecock Fans
Though he joked about receiving plenty of insults walking into the stadium, Swinney defended Shane Beamer’s leadership strongly:
“All I can tell you is Shane’s a good football coach, better person, and he cares.”
He warned against overreacting to rivalry emotions, noting his own five-game losing streak earlier in his career.
“I’m glad Clemson people didn’t give up on me.”
He ended by reaffirming his respect for Beamer and South Carolina’s program:
“I got a lot of respect.”
