Clemson’s ugly 51-20 loss to LSU on Saturday night has put Dabo Swinney’s future back under the microscope, and CBS Sports didn’t soften the blow. The outlet said Swinney’s future is officially “in doubt,” after another performance that left the Tigers looking nowhere near the kind of College Football Playoff force they used to be.
Swinney was blunt after the loss.
“We got our (butts) kicked,” Swinney said. “We gotta go win next week.
It’s an embarrassing performance, coaching and playing. We’re going to have to own that.
We can’t let that lead to another loss.”
CBS Sports was even harsher in its assessment, writing, “Swinney looks out-matched and unable to succeed in this current era of college football. The glory days of Clemson football, which included two national championship wins over Alabama, feel like a lifetime ago. Worse, the path back to that level of success feels impossible now under Swinney,”
The outlet also pointed to Swinney’s decision to hire Chad Morris as offensive coordinator as part of what it called “the ultimate double-down move from Dabo,” saying it reflected a reluctance to evolve in the NIL and transfer portal era.
If Clemson ever does move on from Swinney, three names stand out as possible replacements.
Tony Elliott is the first. The former Clemson offensive coordinator is now at Virginia, where he’s starting to turn things around.
Elliott, 46, took over in 2022 and inherited a program that won just three games in both 2022 and 2023. Virginia improved to five wins in 2024, then jumped to 11-3 in 2025 and won the Gator Bowl.
The Cavaliers are now being viewed as an ACC frontrunner and College Football Playoff contender in 2026.
Rhett Lashlee is another strong fit. The SMU coach has already built a résumé that should keep him on the radar, with the Mustangs reaching the College Football Playoff in 2024 after an 11-3 season. SMU has posted two 11-win seasons under Lashlee, who is 38-16 as a head coach and has ACC coaching experience.
Then there’s Kalen DeBoer, the Alabama coach whose name keeps surfacing in unexpected places. Swinney has long been tied to Alabama because of his playing days there, but that door is not opening.
The more interesting scenario is DeBoer becoming available if things go sideways in Tuscaloosa. Stewart Mandel floated a wild chain reaction in which “Lane Kiffin leaves LSU after nine games for Alabama, which fires Kalen DeBoer after eight games.
DeBoer then goes to Clemson to take over for Dabo Swinney after he gets too distraught over tampering to continue,”
It’s a long shot, but after Clemson’s latest setback, even wild ideas are starting to sound worth discussing.
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