Swinney excited about Georgia opener: "You can kind of just feel it in the air"

Swinney knows there is excitement surrounding the opener.

by David Hood - Senior Writer - Mon Aug 30 08:00:07 GMT-04:00 2021

CLEMSON – This week feels a little different, even to Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney. Why? Because a top-five matchup with Georgia awaits the Tigers on Saturday.

The Tigers and Bulldogs kick off the 2021 season Saturday at 7:30 pm at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte. The game, the first between the schools that sit just 70 miles apart since 2014, will be nationally televised by ABC. Clemson is a 3-point favorite over the Bulldogs, according to Vegas Insider, with an over-under of 52.5 points. The line has been as large as 4.5.

Swinney knows that everyone associated with the game – fans, coaches, players, media – feels a little something different in the air this week.

“It’s just so exciting,” Swinney said on the ACC Network earlier this week. “You can just kind of feel it in the air. And then you throw in the fact that you’re playing a team that’s good enough to win the national championship — and we think we’re a pretty good team — it’s just even more so.”

The game is the marquee matchup of the true opening weekend – a mini slate of games was played last weekend – and will feature a visit from ESPN’s College GameDay crew. Clemson has played in the featured contest on ESPN’s College GameDay 28 times, including 20 times since the start of the 2015 season. Clemson is 16-4 in those contests.

Since the start of the 2018 season, Clemson games account for the four most-watched college football games and five of the 10 most-watched games. Clemson has played in the most-watched game of five of the past six seasons, including 2020, when its semifinal game against Ohio State outdrew the national championship.

Saturday will be no different, and Swinney said his team embraces the hype.

“It’s been fun,” Swinney said. “It creates a lot of conversation. You’ve got GameDay and all that stuff right out of the gate. You’re going to Charlotte, it’s national TV. I mean, it’s awesome. It’s what you dream about as a kid, and as a coach, you love these moments. So, we’re excited about it. And this is two teams that have big-time aspirations, and who knows, could play again down the road somewhere.”

It's been 653 days since the Tigers played in front of a packed stadium and it’s been 241 days since the loss to Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl. There has been offseason conditioning and workouts, spring practice, and the rigors of fall camp. And all that work pays off starting Saturday, just one of 12 regular-season games.

“There’s so much. You get 12 days. You think about that — 300 and something days, all we’ve got is kind of each other. It’s so different from all the other sports,” Swinney said. “Basketball, baseball, you got to play a million games. But in football, you get 12 days that you have on a schedule, and the rest of the year is spent preparing for those 12 days. And you get in the rhythm of the season, you get in a routine.

“But that first game, it seems like it takes forever to get here. There’s so much to do. There are the most unknowns of any time of your season. You never have this much time to prepare. You know the least at any time because you’re basing everything on last year and last year’s people. So, there’s just so much. It’s the first game for a lot of people. A lot of first-game reminders and procedures and sideline organization and just a lot to get ready for.”