Clemson Tigers Head Coach Dabo Swinney Ranked In Top Five Under Most Pressure

Despite making the College Football Playoffs, it was another down year for the Clemson Tigers, and head coach Dabo Swinney may be feeling the pressure.

Dec 7, 2024; Charlotte, NC, USA; Clemson Tigers head coach Dabo Swinney during the second quarter against the Southern Methodist Mustangs in the 2024 ACC Championship game at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

The Clemson Tigers may have found their way into the College Football Playoff with a last-second field goal in the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game, but that does not mean they are happy with their season as a whole.

There was a time not too long ago when the Tigers could be penciled in for the CFP at the beginning of the year, even with that format being four teams and not 12.

Now, Clemson is back to being a 10-win team, but they needed their conference championship to get there one year after going 9-4 and missing out on the conference title and College Football Playoff entirely.

In a recent article from The Athletic, Ralph D. Russo ranked the CFP head coaches from those who are under the most pressure to under the least pressure.

Tigers head coach Dabo Swinney ranked fourth, under more pressure than eight of his contemporaries.

"Little ol' Clemson is back. The Tigers aren't what they used to be, but they're on the big stage again, and frankly, Swinney seems to fit the underdog role much better than the favorite," writes Russo. "It took a couple of small miracles for Clemson to get here, so you'd think it's all extra from here. Fact is, Clemson still has a championship pedigree, and getting bounced in the first round at Texas would further cement Swinney's program as a fading superpower."

Losing to the Texas Longhorns would be the worst-case scenario for Clemson and Swinney, though it would take an upset to quell some of that pressure.

The program's struggles over recent seasons could come down to Swinney's reluctance to bring players in from the transfer portal, something other programs take full advantage of.

There are multiple Group of 5 players every year who can make a difference on Power 4 programs but did not get their fair shake out of high school.

That is no different this year, but it remains to be seen if Swinney will change his ways and bring any of them into the fold.

He is one of the coaches in the College Football Playoff this year who is under immense pressure, but he should still be thankful that he is not Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day.