Swinney says he didn't go hide and cry in the closet, quickly turned attention to UNC

Swinney said the Tigers only have to watch the tape of UNC to refocus.

by David Hood - Senior Writer - Tue Nov 29 12:46:28 GMT-04:00 2022

CLEMSON – For Clemson, it’s time to refocus and concentrate on the best offense the Tigers have faced this season. As head coach Dabo Swinney says, he didn’t go hide and cry in the closet after the loss to South Carolina this past weekend.

Head coach Dabo Swinney met with the media Tuesday to preview this Saturday’s ACC Championship Game against North Carolina. Kickoff is set for 8 pm (ABC) in Charlotte’s Bank of America Stadium.

"I'm really proud of our team for winning the division, the last-ever Atlantic Division. I'm excited to get back to Charlotte for the seventh time in the last eight years (actually six of seven, because one year was in Orlando),” Swinney said. “That's special, it's special to have that type of consistency, especially after we didn't do it for 20 years prior to 2011. It's not easy to do. They've earned it. North Carolina has earned it as well. Both teams have earned it.

"For us, we have two goals left. We won't hit all five goals this year but if we hit four out of five, that's a great year. This North Carolina team struggled defensively early but has gotten better as the year has gone on. They had a lot of injuries. They have gotten stronger. They have some of the best corners we have seen, linebackers that stand out to you and talent up front.”

The Tar Heels are 11th nationally in total offense at 480 yards per game and 15th nationally in scoring offense at 37.1 points per game.

"Offensively, they are the best we have seen by far. They are very good. They're consistent,” Swinney said. “Their quarterback (Drake Maye) is a great, great, football player. He was probably leading for the Heisman going into the Georgia Tech game. That was probably his worst game. He just missed a few players. He's elite, which is why we recruited him. He puts the ball where guys have a chance to make a play. They have good backs. Drake has 35 touchdowns and five picks, so he takes care of the ball. He's also their leading rusher. Good tempo team with a lot of shifts and motions.

“They do a lot of things that we do from a run-game standpoint, a lot of motions and counters. They have the best player we have seen and that's No. 11 (wide receiver Josh Downs). He will have his name called early. He's special. He can catch everything. He's quick as a cat and has great football savvy. They get him the ball every which way. You better know where is. No. 3 (Antoine Green), No. 5 (JJ Jones) are good players, good tight ends, talent everywhere."

Swinney was asked what he’s seen out his players the last two days.

"Yesterday was a tough day, mental Monday. That's part of it. You have to own it and learn from it. You do that and then you go back to work, whether you win or lose,” Swinney said. “It's always tough when you lose but it's not acceptable for us to lose that game. You deal with it but it's not acceptable. It will never be acceptable. It's been nine years since we had a meeting like that after that game. We had a good practice last night and now it's on to the next one. You better refocus quick. You turn on the tape and you see a really good team."

How does a team turn the page? Swinney said you stick to your routine and you don’t cry in the closet.

“I have a schedule. I have work that has to be done. We have a routine and the process of processing the game that you just played,” Swinney said. “We're working Sunday and Sunday night, then it's Monday and the next day. It's the game plan you're working on. You can't sit around and worry about a game whether you win or lose. It's the process of getting ready every week. That's what you have to love to be consistent. It's a common characteristic for consistent winners. It's not that they never lose or have a bad day. It's that they're driven by what it takes to win again.

“We know what we do on Monday, what we do on Tuesday and so on. There's no time to sit around. You have to go back to work. You plan practices, staff meetings, game-planning, tape planning, recruiting non-stop. When the game was over Saturday, we had 180 people at my house Saturday night. I didn't go hide and cry in the closet. I had to go back and do my job. You lean on that and your routine."

If Clemson wants to walk away with a win, the passing game has to be better than the 99 yards manufactured last week, and Swinney was asked if the production has met his expectations.

"We got better. We were passing the ball a lot better earlier. We've had some injuries. I'm disappointed with the way we finished,” Swinney said. “We threw for 100 yards. We got Antonio (Williams) for a 40-yard gain and we miss it. Then we hit him for a 40-yarder and it's dropped. We've got two slants and those were drops. We're not executing the way we needed to or we didn't this past week. Up until Notre Dame, we were doing a pretty good job. It's a lack of production by a few people. Some missed opportunities. We're not where we need to be ... at all.”