Josh Pate sends strong message to Clemson's Dabo Swinney after upset loss to Syracuse

Josh Pate challenges Dabo Swinney to embrace reinvention as Clemson spirals after Syracuse loss.

College football analyst Josh Pate shared a blunt message to Clemson Tigers head coach Dabo Swinney after the team's loss to Syracuse. | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Clemson’s season hit another low with a 34-21 home loss to Syracuse, and the fallout went beyond the scoreboard. On Sunday’s episode of The College Football Show with Josh Pate, the college football analyst directed sharp words at head coach Dabo Swinney, framing the Tigers’ struggles as part of a larger issue with the program's evolution.

At the core of his message was a reminder of Swinney’s own philosophy from a decade ago. “I wrote down some terms that came out of his mouth 10 years ago,” Pate said. “Some of you will remember his famous bell curve analogy as it related to college football. Reinvent, reinvest, reset, learn, and grow. I’m not saying he’s forgotten it. I’m saying I don’t see a whole lot of it around there. And it’s mandatory. It’s just as mandatory now as it was then.”

That quote set the tone for Pate’s evaluation of Clemson as a program that has grown predictable.

Clemson Seen As A Stale Commodity

Pate described the Tigers as lacking the spark that once defined their national championship runs. With most starters returning from last year and only minimal additions through the transfer portal, he said there is little mystery left in how Clemson looks on the field. “There’s no unknown. There’s no unknown about the team. Everything’s known. It’s a known commodity,” Pate said, noting that one of the Tigers’ rare portal pickups, defensive end Will Heldt, has been among their few bright spots, providing two sacks and 16 total tackles to start this season.

For Pate, the issue isn’t just a bad start to the season but a bigger pattern of stagnation. He pointed out that Louisville came into Memorial Stadium last year and pushed Clemson around, LSU did the same with a hobbled quarterback to open this season, and now Syracuse joined the list.

Clemson Tigers defensive end Will Heldt (13), a transfer from Purdue, has been one of the few bright spots on the roster. | Ken Ruinard / staff / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The message was clear: these aren’t elite powerhouses taking control, but teams that should be underdogs winning on preparation and effort.

Syracuse quarterback Steve Angeli embodied that point. Before leaving with a torn Achilles that ended his season, Angeli shredded the Tigers’ defense and gave the Orange a two-score cushion. Pate called him “surgical” and noted even former Clemson players were texting him during the game to say how much more prepared Syracuse looked.

A Crossroads For Dabo Swinney

The loss to Syracuse, which dropped Clemson to 1-3, raised questions about where the program is headed under Swinney. Pate argued that 2025 may be remembered as a defining year in hindsight. Depending on how Swinney responds, it could be seen as the start of a decline, the last gasp of his tenure, or the beginning of a dramatic reset that carries the Tigers back into championship contention.

Pate returned again to Swinney’s bell curve analogy from 2015, when the coach stressed that successful programs must avoid plateauing by constantly evolving. The irony, Pate suggested, is that Clemson now looks like the very example of a team that failed to heed that warning.

Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney and the Tigers are off to a 1-3 start for the first time in his tenure with the ACC powerhouse. | GREENVILLE NEWS-USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images

“Reinvent, reinvest, reset, learn, and grow,” he repeated, underscoring that Swinney still has time to apply those principles but is running out of chances to prove it.

Clemson now has a bye week before traveling to face North Carolina on Oct. 4.