Clemson coach Dabo Swinney gives first thoughts on opening CFP game against Texas
Welcome back to the College Football Playoff, Clemson.
The ACC champion Tigers are the No. 12 seed in the inaugural 12-team CFP bracket and will play a first-round game at No. 5 Texas on Saturday, Dec. 21 (4 p.m., TNT).
The winner advances to a quarterfinal game against No. 4 Arizona State, scheduled for New Year’s Day at the Peach Bowl in Atlanta.
Coach Dabo Swinney, who’s making his seventh CFP appearance, offered his first thoughts on the matchup with the SEC runner-up Longhorns and other topics during a Zoom teleconference with media on Sunday afternoon.
Dabo previews CFP game at Texas
▪ Swinney says Texas’ Darrell K. Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium is a “magical, historic place ... what a great experience for our guys to compete” at Texas’ stadium, also known as DKR Stadium, seats over 100,000 people. Clemson has never played there, and the Tigers and the Longhorns have never played each other in the first place.
▪ The team will get a couple days off before they get into preparation for the Dec. 21 game. Swinney says they had a ton of contingency plans in place, including one for if they got a first-round bye. Clemson will likely hold initial meetings this Wednesday and start practicing for the game on Thursday.
▪ There’s no update yet on backup running backup Jay Haynes. “We’re waiting on the result of the MRI,” Swinney said. Haynes left the ACC championship game on crutches and wearing a heavy brace on his left knee after getting hurt on a kickoff return Saturday night.
▪ With Haynes injured, starting RB Phil Mafah, who already wasn’t 100% with a shoulder injury, had to play more snaps vs. SMU. Swinney says he was “proud” of how the senior responded. “He was able to bring a little something ... he has the heart of a lion.” Mafah finished with 13 carries for 28 yards (2.2 yards per carry).
▪ On RB depth, Swinney added that true freshman RB David Eziomume is “someone we’re gonna need” and he’s glad they can play him throughout the postseason without Eziomume losing his redshirt. With Mafah injured and Haynes’ status up in the air, there’s an opportunity for other reserve running backs (Eziomume, Keith Adams Jr. and Jarvis Green) to step up.
▪ Swinney’s trip out to Austin to shadow then-Texas coach Mack Brown in February 2009, entering his first year as Clemson’s full-time head coach at age 39, was “life-changing.” He took his entire staff down and spent hours picking Brown’s brain. He still has pages of notes from the visit. “That time was transformational.”
▪ Safety Andrew Mukuba transferred from Clemson to Texas this past offseason and will now match up against his old program. Swinney says he loved recruiting and coaching Mukuba, who was the 2021 ACC Defensive Rookie of the Year. “He did everything that was asked of him and worked his butt off here.” He wishes Mukuba could’ve finished as a Tiger, but he’s “happy” the safety found a chance to transfer back closer to home and have a great year with the Longhorns.
▪ Swinney appreciates the CFP selection committee’s decision to keep SMU in the field as the No. 11 seed even though the Mustangs lost to Clemson in the ACC title game. SMU got the last spot over Alabama. “It would’ve set a bad precedent,” Swinney says. “I don’t think you should reward teams for not making their conference championship game and punish teams for making it.”
▪ This is a homecoming game for Austin native and Clemson QB Cade Klubnik. “It’s a cool storyline,” Swinney says of his junior quarterback, who just one his second ACC championship MVP award. For Klubnik to play his first career CFP game in his hometown? “You can’t make that up,” he says.
This story was originally published December 8, 2024 at 4:53 PM.
