Swinney's Instincts, Experience Gauge How Tough Clemson Practices Before Georgia

While Clemson has an extra week to prepare for Georgia, Tigers head coach Dabo Swinney says the only way he knows how to practice is tough in the preseason.

Clemson has entered one of the trickiest weeks of the preseason. 

The No. 3 Tigers have been practicing since Aug. 6, and banging heads in full pads for nearly two weeks. However, they still don't have a game until the Sept. 4 season opener against the No. 5 Georgia Bulldogs. 

That means an entire week of hot, grueling practices before Clemson even starts its typical game week prep. And with this opener coming against a top-notch opponent, it creates a balancing act of what is physical enough and what is too much for Tigers head coach Dabo Swinney. 

"I don't know any other way to prepare to play football without practicing tough," Swinney said. "To me, it's not fair to ask your guys to go play a certain way on gameday if you don't prepare them that way, especially guys that aren't pros, guys that are developing players." 

For the veteran heading into his 13th full season as a head coach, knowing how tough to be on his players comes from instinct and experience, so being ready for the first game in Charlotte, N.C., shouldn't be an issue. Staying healthy is key, and that's where Swinney's experience takes over.

"I have a plan that I believe in but sometimes it's a little more," Swinney said. "Sometimes you back off a little bit."

But as Swinney seems to note every August, there are no preseason games in college football. There are no opportunities to truly simulate all of the experiences and prepare the body and mind for 60 minutes of football like they do in the pros, where practice and preseason game reps are closely monitored.

"It's not like you're in the NFL, where you've got guys who have played a million snaps," Swinney said. "These are young guys, mentally and physically and you have to teach them. You have to prepare them. The only way you can do that is to get a certain amount of live work, a certain amount of competitive work, slow it down some.

"At the end of the day, it comes down to experience and having a pulse of your team. Obviously, injuries and things like that can dictate as well."