Clemson Tigers Head Coach Dabo Swinney Doesn't Rule Out Using Transfer Portal

Could the Clemson Tigers use the transfer portal after a disappointing recruiting class?

Nov 30, 2024; Clemson, South Carolina, USA; Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney talks at a press conference after the game at Memorial Stadium. | Ken Ruinard-Imagn Images

The Clemson Tigers are getting prepared for what will be a massive game for the ACC Championship against the SMU Mustangs. 

While battling for the ACC Title is a big deal for the program, the Tigers will not only be playing for conference supremacy, but they will be playing for an automatic bid to the College Football Playoff. 

If Clemson is able to win, they not only will get a spot in the CFP, but they very well could see themselves as a Top-4 seed with a bye. This would be a huge deal for the program and give them a nice advantage over whoever their opponent might be. Getting a bye week and some rest at this point in the season is important, as every team is banged up at this point. 

While the program has a lot that they are focused on coming up, they also just finished finalizing their 2025 recruiting class. The class ended up coming with a disappointing ranking of 26th this year, as it was the worst class ranking-wise since Swinney’s first year at the program. 

Furthermore, while it might not end up being a bad group of players, the Tigers and Swinney could look to the transfer portal for some additional help. Recently, Swinney spoke about the possibility of checking out the portal after Monday to potentially improve the team for next season. 

“If something unexpected happens,” Swinney said to Will Vandervort of the Clemson Insider. “Right now, we do not expect any unexpected, but who knows? Yes, it is a good tool to know that you can go get a guy if you need it. But when you look at your roster, and we met for an hour this morning on it. Every position, every coach, and then we go from there. So, we will see.”

Based on the comments from Swinney, it doesn’t seem overly likely that Clemson will be aggressive in the portal like other teams have become in recent years. It can be an excellent tool to bring in talented players, but that hasn’t been the way the Tigers and Swinney have operated. 

However, depending on whether some draft eligible players decide to unexpectedly leave, it could change the head coaches mind over the next few weeks. 

While it was a disappointing class by Clemson’s standards, this is still a very good program that has a lot of reason to believe in the program for years to come.