Has Dabo Swinney's era of dominance ended? Josh Pate boldly declares Clemson Football "dead," questioning the program's future in the evolving landscape.
From 2011 through 2024, Clemson ran the ACC.
The Tigers won nine conference championships during that time period.
Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney resurrected the program, winning two national championships and making the College Football Playoff seven times.
The Tigers fell off the map last season, finishing 7-6, despite entering the year as a favorite to win the ACC. Frankly, Clemson was lucky to make and win the ACC championship in 2024.
In 2025, Clemson was replaced by Miami, and there are questions surrounding Swinney. Has the new era of the transfer portal and NIL passed him by?
During the Josh Pate's College Football Show on Thursday, the host started to praise Swinney for how he boosted the program. He had Clemson prepared to compete for national titles despite playing in a lackluster conference.
"Clemson was so razor-sharp despite not getting battle-tested," Pate said. "That was a huge testament to the way Dabo ran Clemson.
"Now, this sounds like a Dabo love fest. It's about to take a very sharp downward turn. I don't know that it's that way anymore.”
Pate made disparaging remarks about where the Tigers are headed. He declared the program dead.
“Clemson has fallen off, and it doesn't feel like they're coming back," Pate said. “ “And I had like a strange amount of you ask me if I heard what (CBS Sports’ Tom) Fornelli said the other day about Clemson."
Fornelli said the Tigers are "dead" and are "not coming back."
Pate agrees with the assessment. He doesn't think Clemson has a roster that can match the Hurricanes.
“So now going into 2026, the talent level has fallen off," Pate said. "The players aren't there. The players are not there. They have finished outside the top 20 in the rivals team rankings the last two seasons.
"They're not a major portal player at all. The players just aren't there. They don't match rosters with Miami. They're not even close anymore. So Clemson's not going to be the one that pulls the sled for you anymore.”
Swinney tried to make changes in the offseason, hiring offensive coordinator Chad Morris, who has not called plays since 2020.
But the talent isn't there. And that matters more than the coaching staff.