Where the latest national outlet ranked Dabo Swinney among coaching peers

Dabo Swinney seeks yet another ACC title and a return to the national title discussion this season with his Clemson Tigers.

Brandon Rink · Assoc. Editor / Staff Writer · Thursday, May 22 2025

Dabo Swinney's spot within the college football head coaches ranking on CBS Sports remained unchanged this offseason.

Swinney ranked third again, trailing only Georgia's Kirby Smart and Ohio State's Ryan Day.

"Remember when Nick Saban asked, 'Is this what y'all want football to be?' about up-tempo offenses, and then immediately pivoted to having a more modern offense at Alabama? I wonder if Dabo finally hitting the transfer portal is his 'Is this what y'all want football to be?' moment. Not that I believe Dabo will live in the portal like so many other coaches, but that he'll use it to fill enough gaps to return Clemson to national title contender status. Plenty of people looking at his 2025 roster feel he's already done it," CBS' Tom Fornelli said.

Clemson added an expected starter at defensive end from Purdue in Will Heldt, in addition to a spring standout at wide receiver in Tristan Smith. Former 5-star high school prospect Jeremiah Alexander (Alabama) was also added to the linebacker corps.

Swinney faces a fellow Top 10 member and Top 10 preseason team with Brian Kelly (8) and LSU out of the gate on August 30 in Death Valley.

"The narratives you hear about Brian Kelly from college football media and fans at large don't truly reflect his standing among his peers," Fornelli writes. "Yes, you can argue that his time at LSU has been a disappointment so far. The man did leave Notre Dame for the job because he said you couldn't compete for national titles in South Bend, yet it was the Irish playing for one last season while Kelly went 9-4 at LSU. At the same time, he didn't fall outside the top 10 on a single ballot among our voters. The Tigers may not have been as successful as they had hoped during his tenure, but there's a reason he's at LSU in the first place."

The next coaches on the 2025 slate are Louisville's Jeff Brohm (17), SMU's Rhett Lashlee (22) and Florida State's Mike Norvell (25).

Norvell, off of a one-loss 2023 campaign to a disastrous 2024 season (2-10), fell 17 spots year-to-year.

"The good news for Norvell is he's still clinging to a spot in the top 25. The bad news is he's still only 33-27 overall and 20-20 in ACC play with the Seminoles. The really bad news is Google Trends has seen a spike in 'Mike Norvell buyout' queries in northern Florida," Fornelli said.