A Swinney was amiss on Monday night.
A few college football titans fell this weekend. First, Colorado downed TCU in a thriller, then Florida State clowned LSU in a battle of top-10 teams. On Monday night, Clemson joined the Week 1 sadness.
Riley Leonard and Duke dominated the Tigers in a 28-7 stunner, sending coach Dabo Swinney's squad to just their third Week 1 loss since he took over in 2009, and muzzle them they did. For the duration of the second half, the Tigers neither scored nor did they punt on every drive. Here's how each drive finished:
- Eight plays, 71 yards, missed field goal;
- Seven plays, 62 yards, fumble;
- 11 plays, 48 yards, fumble;
- Eight plays, 29 yards, turnover on downs;
- Four plays, 14 yards, interception;
- Seven plays, 36 yards, turnover on downs.
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A second half of such utter futility makes for a strange and uncomfortable feeling for Clemson football, and Swinney admitted as much after the loss.
"That's the weirdest game I've ever been a part of," Swinney said postgame. "I've been beat. I've had my butt kicked. But that's the strangest game I've ever been a part of. … It's almost indescribable what I just saw. It's incredibly frustrating when you had so much opportunity."
The second half isn't the start of the alarm bells for Clemson, however. The Tigers have lost three of their last four games dating back to last season and opened the 2023 season ranked No. 9 in the AP polls. While that's still a lofty regard, it's the lowest they've been ranked to start a season since they opened at No. 12 in 2015.
Seven points is the lowest total ever scored by a Tigers squad vs. an unranked opponent under Swinney, as well.
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While the opening loss to Duke is concerning mark on the slate, the Tigers have an opportunity for a get-right game vs. Charleston Southern coming up on Saturday.
That could provide the boost they need to wash out the Blue Devil loss. If not, things may get more than a bit catty for the Tigers over the coming months.