Dabo Swinney believes Tony Elliott was destined to lead Virginia

Dabo Swinney has admired the work that his former player and assistant has done in Charlottesville.

Grayson Mann - Staff Writer - Wednesday, October 16 2024

CLEMSON -Dabo Swinney has always believed Tony Elliott had what it took to lead a program at the highest level.

Now, his former assistant will look to best him from across the sideline, hoping an upset would signal Virginia is heading in the right direction.

Swinney understands the Cavaliers program has dealt with many highs and lows during Elliott's early tenure. He watched Elliott lead his roster through tragedy in his first year as the leading man, becoming a face of hope for the community.

Swinney remembers those conversations well, believing his former coordinator was put there for a reason.

“He's been through a lot; his first year was just a nightmare situation, but like I told him, I think that's why God took him there because nobody is more equipped than Tony to lead a group of young people and to help navigate some really dark times for a lot of people in that university,” Swinney said. “And he did a great job.”

In Elliott’s first year, the Cavaliers posted a 3-7 record, with multiple cancellations occurring in the wake of the shooting. Fast-forward to year two, Elliott’s program went 3-9 but had six one-possession losses and an upset over UNC on the road, a team ranked in the top 25.

"It's really impressive what he's been able to instill,” Swinney said. “You see it, especially from a coach's eye watching it. I see. And you saw it, actually saw it last year. I mean, they had what, I think they had four games that came down to a play last year, and I just started to see what he's trying to instill in the team show up.”

Now, year three is beginning to show positive returns for Elliott’s Cavaliers, heading into Clemson with a 4-2 record.

His offense has also noticeably improved. In 2023, the unit averaged under 24 points per game, struggling to put together the right plays to close out some of the one-possession ball games.

Six games in, Elliott’s production has risen to over 27 points per game, with his offense putting up 30+ points in half of Virginia’s contests.

Slowly but surely, his program is growing before his eyes, and his former mentor isn’t shocked by the results.

“Just a lot of growth,” Swinney said. “You are not necessarily getting all the results, but you can just see the kids, his impact, and them buying in. And then this year, man, this is a good football team. They turned it over four times against Maryland...I mean, you're not going to win a game with four turnovers. That's an anomaly. And then this past week, they had every opportunity to win that game and just had a couple of critical mistakes late in the game that cost them. But this is a good football team, got one loss in the league, and they're fighting to get back and stay in contention, so we'll get everything they got. Not to mention, there are a lot of Clemson people on that staff, so it'll be a well-informed group coming in here to challenge us.”

Now, Swinney is facing a former assistant for the first time in his lengthy career.

He told the media that moments like Saturday feel like he’s growing up. He hopes a win against the Cavaliers is a sign his team is maturing as the calendar draws closer to the postseason.