Dabo talks about chances of winning National Championship

by David Hood - Senior Writer - Wed May 22 10:32:13 GMT-04:00 2013

CLEMSON – TigerNet sat down with Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney Dabo Swinney
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View Full Profile towards the end of spring practice, and the purpose was just to get a better idea of how Clemson’s head coach has changed since 2008.

In the final installment of that interview, we asked Swinney about the expectations heading into this season and in future seasons, and the talk naturally led to the challenge of winning a national championship.

Swinney said he truly believes he can win a national title at Clemson, but said winning a national championship goes further than the head coach.

“Absolutely. It’s not me taking them. It’s us,” Swinney said. “As long as we are together and committed, and we have a team and a staff that is truly ‘All In’ and committed to being the best that we can be on and off the field, there’s nothing that we can’t do at Clemson. If I didn’t think we could win a National Championship at Clemson, I wouldn’t be here. I don’t have any desire to just be average or for somebody to tell me that I can’t dream at the highest level. There are no limits on your dreams. Here at Clemson, we are our only limitation.”

Swinney said that winning a national title – especially in this day and age – is harder than people think.

“Is it easy to do? No. Michigan’s won one [in recent years]. Georgia has won one. Clemson has won one. Tennessee has won one. Auburn has won one. Florida State has won, I think, two,” Swinney said. “I think Alabama just won their fourth. Texas has won one. So, it’s not like it’s something that is easy to do, but there is no doubt that we can do it here at Clemson. That’s the goal - the ultimate goal.”

He then said that all the pieces have to fall into place in order to win one.

“There are a lot of things between here and there, but my main objective is to be a consistent performer at a high level,” he said. “If we can be that consistent Top 10, Top 15 team then we’ll put it together. That ball’s not round that we play with. Sooner or later that ball will bounce the way we want it to and we’ll have that special season. “

However, if Swinney can’t win the ultimate prize, he knows that whoever follows him will strive to continue the legacy that former Clemson head coach Danny Ford set.

“Coach Ford set the standard for all of us,” he said. “Whoever comes after me, Coach Ford set the standard. Hopefully while I’m here at Clemson, we’ll be able to win one National Championship or more and if not , there will be somebody else in here and they’ll get it done. There’s no doubt, as far as Clemson is concerned, that this is a place that can do it.”