Dabo Swinney’s place in USA TODAY’s 2026 coaches rankings tells the story of Clemson’s rough 2025 in one glance.
After landing at No. 3 a year ago, Swinney dropped seven spots to No. 10 this offseason, a slide that lines up with Clemson’s 7-6 finish. USA TODAY still credited Swinney for everything he’s built in Tigertown, but the publication made it clear that the recent dip - and the realities of the transfer portal era - are driving the decline.
“One of the most historically successful active head coaches in college football, Swinney has two national titles and nine conference championships at Clemson. However, the Tigers have fallen off in the era of the transfer portal and had a disappointing 7-6 finish after starting in the top five of the US LBM Coaches Poll. Whether he can find a solution will determine whether he rises or falls in these rankings,” USA TODAY stated in its official evaluation.
The magazine also slotted Clemson at No. 24 nationally after spring ball, with the quarterback situation taking center stage. With the previous starter gone and no quarterback arriving from the transfer portal, the spring was all about redshirt sophomore Christopher Vizzina settling into the job under new offensive coordinator Chad Morris.
“No previous starting quarterback on campus and no quarterback from the transfer portal means this spring was all about giving time to Christopher Vizzina to get acclimated to the starting role with new offensive coordinator Chad Morris. The good news?
Wide receivers Bryant Wesco and T.J. Moore look set to have big seasons if Vizzina can deliver the ball.
The portal brought in reinforcements for the defense - notably lineman Markus Strong (Oklahoma) and defensive back Elliot Washington II (Penn State) - to join a group led by leading linebacker Sammy Brown. But there’s still overall questions about this roster’s ability to push for a playoff spot,” the publication noted.
At the top of the coaching rankings, Indiana’s Curt Cignetti made the biggest jump, vaulting from No. 13 last year to No. 1 after a historic run with the Hoosiers.
“What Cignetti did in transitioning James Madison from the Championship Subdivision to being in position to reach the College Football Playoff would be enough to earn a spot on this list. However, he's at No. 1 because of his insane success at Indiana.
The Hoosiers are 27-2 and 17-1 in the Big Ten in his two seasons with a dominant run to the school's first national title. Cignetti is simply the closest thing college coaching has to a Nick Saban-like figure,” USA TODAY stated.
Georgia’s Kirby Smart, Ohio State’s Ryan Day, Notre Dame’s Marcus Freeman and Oregon’s Dan Lanning filled out the rest of the top five.
Clemson’s opening stretch won’t offer much breathing room. The Tigers start the season against LSU and head coach Lane Kiffin, who checks in at No. 6 overall, before moving into an ACC schedule that includes a home game against Miami and Mario Cristobal at No. 7 and a matchup with Virginia Tech and James Franklin at No. 14.
In Other News...
ESPN Just Sent Dabo Swinney A Message Clemson Fans Wont Ignore
Dabo Swinney has spent 18 seasons turning Clemson into one of the sports defining programs, piling up a 187-53 record along with championships and playoff runs that made the Tigers a fixture in the national conversation. But after a 7-6 season in 2025 that fell well short of preseason expectations, the tone around Clemson has changed, and ESPNs latest coaches ranking for 2026 reflected that shift in a way Tigers fans probably noticed right away.
Swinney was not included in the networks top 10, even though he still drew votes, a sign that his standing among the sports elite is no longer as secure as it once was. With Clemson also staring at major roster turnover and a steep drop in returning production for 2026, the bigger question now is whether this is just a temporary dip or the start of a more serious test of Swinneys grip on the program. [Read more 🡒]
Dabo Swinneys Clemson Reset Left Out One Move Fans Wanted
Clemsons offseason reset has been about urgency from the start, and Dabo Swinney has made sure nobody inside the program can mistake the tone after a 7-6 finish to a year that began with preseason expectations near the top of the sport. The Tigers have already gone through meaningful coaching and roster changes, including the addition of Chad Morris on offense and a wave of defensive help, as Swinney tries to steer the program back toward the standard it missed last fall.
Even with all that movement, there was still a sense around the fan base that one more bold step might be coming, especially after a season in which the offense never found enough consistency. Clemson has leaned into a more aggressive roster rebuild and brought in a record transfer class, but the most talked-about move some supporters wanted never materialized, leaving the quarterback picture as the biggest unresolved part of the reset heading into the new season. [Read more 🡒]