Dabo Swinney‘s last year went great (comparatively), and they got all the ingredients to make 2025 even better, a campaign rooted in Cade Klubnik-led offense. But the doubts persist. The reason? It’s Garrett Nussmeier‘s LSU; they will round off against them in their season opener. But the 2024 campaign saw some sharp jabs as well. Tom Fornelli had already made a blunt retort to Swinney’s “16-0” dream. Yet, now another analyst has come to put the reality in front of Swinney’s face.

“You [Clemson] lost to South Carolina on your home field,” Chris Fallica described Clemson’s ugly defeats on a podcast segment on Bear Bets. Even the victories couldn’t instill confidence in Fallica. “You stole a game at Pit that you really had no business winning whatsoever.” The Tigers defeated Pittsburgh 24-20, owing to the Panthers’ buckling defense. The Tigers were trailing behind, but the last quarter saw wide receiver T.J. Moore giving Klubnik a lane that led to a 50-yard touchdown. He continued. “And SMU handed you 14 points right out of the gate because of turnovers in the ACC championship game.”

That was an interesting nugget of a game. Although Clemson trailed 21-7 in the first quarter, they slumped to just 3-17 in the fourth quarter. But the last-minute comeback was the game-changer. Adam Randall‘s 41-yard kickoff set the stage again, with Klubnik taking over their ball at 45. He then found Antonio Williams for a 17-yard gain.

Adding to the lost ground, Fallica said. “They were so benefited by turnovers last year. Can something like that happen two years in a row? “Yes, Swinney is striding confidently to the season opener and a blue-chip running back adding another asset to strengthen the running game, but can they make it to the playoffs?

The analyst continued his take. “You look at the schedule, and you’ve got the LSU game this year. You go to South Carolina, you go to Louisville. Georgia Tech is never an easy trip. I think BC will be better with Bill O’Brien kind of cleaning up that roster some. You get SMU there or at Clemson as well, but I mean, we’ve seen teams go there and win. I just think there are a lot of losses on that schedule, a lot of potential losses on that schedule.” A tricky road ahead, with a lot of bumps.

But then again, would Fallica be surprised if Coach Swinney hits the sledgehammer again? “No,” replied Fallica. “Wouldn’t surprise me at all. But I think this team might be just living a little bit more off of the fact that they played Texas a little bit closer than people thought in the college football playoff, than actually what they really achieved as a whole last year. ” So, are his CFP “We are going to be the first 16-0 team” ambitions in jeopardy?

That being said, the optimism hasn’t dipped a yardstick yet, as the head coach is planning for an explosive season. His conviction? “I think we’re going to be the first 16-0 team.” That’s Dabo Swinney for you. Let’s see what week 1 brings forth for the Clemson Tigers, squaring off against SEC powerhouse LSU. More than that, the fandom wouldn’t miss a beat to watch Garrett Nussmeier and Cade Klubnik, both Top 3 Heisman contenders, facing off against each other.

The 2025 season is pretty challenging, even for SEC powerhouses such as Georgia and LSU. And Swinney is riding shotgun, not on a bumpy road, but rather in rugged terrain. But there’s one analyst who might be just rooting for him.

Joel Klatt exudes confidence in Dabo Swinney

Dabo Swinney is known for his confident swagger. And as it seems, Fox Sports’ Joel Klatt’s prediction will only boost his morale. The prediction? Clemson Tigers will edge out the No. 1 reigning national champion, the Ohio State Buckeyes, and bring back the national trophy to Memorial Stadium.

“My national champion, the official pick, the Clemson Tigers win the national championship in college football,” he announced on Tuesday. Seems far-fetched? Not really. But challenging? Yes. It’s not as if they haven’t brought the trophy home. They clad the victor’s gauntlet thrice. In 1981, 2016, and 2018. The two recent wins came under Swinney’s leadership.

Klatt further drew a comparison between Swinney and the legendary Nick Saban. “I think Dabo wins his third national championship, proves that there’s still a way to win in this era where everyone has been all over him about not adjusting. Which means Dabo Swinney would join Nick Saban as one of the only coaches to win national championships over different cycles of recruits. That’s very difficult to do,” he said.

Zooming in on Klatt’s predictions, he made a detailed map. He has picked the Clemson Tigers to defeat Miami in the ACC championship and qualify as a No. 3 seed in the playoffs. Moving on, they will lead them to the quarterfinals, where Clemson will defeat the No. 6 seed Oregon. Now, here it gets interesting as they will face off against Steve Sarkisian‘s No. 2 seed Texas Longhorns. Last season’ defeat left a bitter feeling, but, as per Klatt’s prediction, they will defeat the Arch Manning-led offense and climb towards the national championship game.

“Manning against Klubnik, I’m gonna go with the more experienced quarterback here.” Although inexperienced, Manning is ranked No. 3 as a Heisman trophy contender. Klatt continued with, “I think Dabo and Klubnik and that defense and just their overall soundness get the job done.” Now, the most interesting bit, the championship game. The Tigers will go against the Ohio State Buckeyes, beat them, and win the natty.

But what are Klatt’s reasons? A complete roster that checks off the laundry list. A coach who has done it before, an experienced quarterback, a defense that is not the best, but “could be one of the better,” with three Tigers’ players, Peter Woods, T.J. Parker, and Cade Klubnik, coming under Klatt’s top 10 players overall list. That’s Klatt’s confidence in Swinney.