College Football HQ

Paul Finebaum urges $115 million coach to bolt historic college football program

One historic college football program has had a major fall from being a perennial contender. Paul Finebaum thinks it is time for a 2-time national champ to take a new job.

Jonathan Adams

Oct 5, 2024; College Station, Texas, USA; SEC Nation analyst Paul Finebaum looks on prior to the game between the Texas A&M Aggies and the Missouri Tigers at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images.
Oct 5, 2024; College Station, Texas, USA; SEC Nation analyst Paul Finebaum looks on prior to the game between the Texas A&M Aggies and the Missouri Tigers at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images. / Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images
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One college football program was once mentioned among the sport's elite teams like Alabama, Ohio State and Michigan. Now, this ACC squad is struggling to make a bowl game.

ESPN's Paul Finebaum is urging Dabo Swinney to step away from Clemson. With so many attractive openings in the spinning college football coaching carousel, Finebaum thinks it is time for Swinney to hit the reset button.

"I am strongly suggesting Dabo Swinney get out of there, though," Finebaum noted on"The Matt Barrie Show" on Sunday. "It's gotten so bad. And I hate to see a Hall of Fame coach act that petulant and that poorly. And I don't have any doubt he can find a job and sometimes you just have to move on.

"We've all been there or known someone who has been there. And I think his agent should look around and say, 'Okay, which one of these openings would be fun for me?' Where can I go, meaning Dabo Swinney, where I can just hit the restart button and quit being a cranky, get-off-your-lawn guy and make these self-deprecating jokes about getting fired when everybody knows he's not getting fired," Finebaum added.

"Although, if he's not careful, though, and if this season ends the way it obviously is and the next season doesn't go well, his fan base will want him fired. That's the new normal in college football."

If Dabo Swinney bolts Clemson, Florida or LSU make the most sense

Chances are Swinney is not looking to the media for help making a decision about his future. Swinney is one of the highest-paid coaches in college football with a 10-year, $115 million contract, per USA Today.

With Swinney's lucrative deal slated to run through 2031, the coach has every reason to stay at Clemson. But if Swinney were to take Finebaum's advice, where would the coach go?

Swinney remaining in the South makes the most sense, and the high-profile job openings are at Florida and LSU. The Clemson coach recruiting the state of Florida would be fun to watch.

Although, it is worth noting that Swinney would have a much more challenging path to the College Football Playoff in the SEC than he has had in the ACC.

It is time for Clemson HC Dabo Swinney to ask some hard questions

The bigger question is whether Swinney can succeed in the new era of college football. Swinney thrived when Clemson could land the top recruits and keep them in South Carolina for three to four years.

With college football rosters becoming more of a revolving door, Swinney has struggled to adapt. Swinney has also been reluctant to embrace the transfer portal.

This past offseason, we saw Clemson be more active in the portal than in years past, but it has not led to wins. It is fair to say that the problem is not Clemson, and if Swinney is not willing to adapt, it will not matter what logo is on the coach's polo.

To become bowl eligible, Clemson needs to win three of these final four games: Florida State, at Louisville, Furman and at South Carolina. The Gamecocks would like nothing more than to keep Clemson from making a bowl with a rivalry win to end the season.

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Jonathan Adams
JONATHAN ADAMS

Jonathan Adams is a veteran sports writer who has written for notable outlets and interviewed some of the top athletes for more than 10 years. Since 2015, his sports coverage has been read by tens of millions and has been prominently featured on Heavy, NFL.com, Yahoo Sports, Pro Football Talk, CBS Sports, Bleacher Report and more. Jonathan is a member of the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) and a voter for the Maxwell Award and Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year. He has interviewed many of the biggest stars in sports — Bryce Harper, Jayden Daniels, Justin Jefferson, Bijan Robinson and Micah Parsons to name a few — and has traveled the country to cover the College Football Playoff, NFL draft, Masters, March Madness, Senior Bowl, McDonald’s All-American Game and beyond. Jonathan Adams studied at the University of Central Florida and The Seattle School of Theology & Psychology. He holds master degrees in sport business management, business administration and theology & culture.

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