Dabo Swinney won’t take calls anymore on radio show. Here’s why Shane Beamer will
It’s been over 10 months since Tyler from Spartanburg graced the airwaves, providing perhaps one of the best this-is-why-we-love-college-football moments of the year.
Clemson was 4-4 and coach Dabo Swinney was on his weekly radio show, “Tiger Calls.” A caller had the chance to ask a question and spoke for two minutes, citing everything from Tommy Bowden to Proverbs to Swinney’s contract. It elicited a six-minute, 900-word rant from Swinney that has since become legendary.
Perhaps too legendary, because Swinney no longer takes live calls from fans on his radio show.
Despite that change, South Carolina coach Shane Beamer still shows up to Backstreets Grill every Thursday at 6 p.m. for Carolina Calls. There, he takes questions from folks in the audience — including a man named John, who often inquires about something quite specific — and over the phone, where a regular caller named “Hampton in Ohio,” often gets in a question.
With the recent news that Swinney will only take questions from fans via Clemson’s flagship radio station’s text line during his show, Beamer was asked if he ever gets worried about a Tyler-from-Spartanburg-esque call coming though on a Thursday night.
“I do. We were 2-6 at one point last year,” Beamer said. “So yeah, you get a little worried about calls when you’re 2-6.”
Beamer noted he enjoys fans getting the chance to call in, noting that it’s part of what makes college football great. And, well, he seems fine with the idea of fan criticism — over the phone or in-person.
“If they think I’m doing a crappy job, they’ve got every right to call in and question what we’re doing and tell me I’m doing a crappy job,” Beamer said. “I understand why Dabo did it and, you know, (I’m) not disagreeing with it. I don’t mind that aspect of it.”
The radio show draws a loyal crowd every week. And, nothing drastic enough has caused him to rethink the format.
“For now,” Beamer said with a smile. “We’re 1-0. I may change my tune as we go.”
This story was originally published September 3, 2024 at 5:43 PM.
