Dabo Swinney Goes After Notre Dame, SEC, CFB Playoff Selection Committee

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Dabo Swinney thinks that his Clemson Tigers are perennial outsiders in the world of college football, and he might be right.

Swinney, Clemson's head coach, famously said several years ago that Clemson is a "rest of y'all" (ROY) team, that the sport revolved around the Alabama Crimson Tide. There's Alabama and then the "rest of y'all." And even in 2024, where a post-Nick Saban Alabama is 8-3 and almost certainly out of the College Football Playoff, Swinney thinks his team is still on the outside looking in.

In a new interview, Swinney said he feels that even with the expanded playoff, it's the Big Ten, SEC, Notre Dame and then the ROY. 

"It’s the SEC-Big Ten Invitational and Notre Dame makes up their own rules. Always have. We’ve been on the ROY team forever. We have," Swinney said on the Gramlich and Mac Lain podcast this week. "It’s been SEC, Big Ten, Notre Dame and the rest of y’all. It’s been that way for my whole time here at Clemson. But guess what, check our records, you know, versus all of them. Check our records."

Clemson football coach Dabo Swinney dropped an incredible quote about how every player is a transfer. Watch a video of his comments. (Credit: Getty Images)

Clemson Tigers Head Coach Dabo Swinney believes his team is on the outside looking in of the college football playoff world compared to the SEC and Big Ten Conference. (Photo: Getty Images)

Dabo Swinney Has A Point About Clemson

Swinney's Clemson teams won two National Championships in 2016 and 2018 by beating Nick Saban and Alabama. He's also had a winning record against Ohio State and Notre Dame. But playing in the new look ACC doesn't create the same type of respect that the Big Ten and SEC generate.

And Dabo thinks that might keep them out of the College Football Playoff this year.

"We go win this game and we’re 10-2, I don’t see how you can’t put us in," he said. "We’ve been able to win at the highest level. But you’ve gotta earn it. You’ve gotta earn it. But what’s also been demonstrated is if you do earn it you’re going to be given the opportunity. It might be somebody else’s invitational but they’ll let you in. They’ll give you a seat at the table.

"But then you’ve gotta handle your business. So it’s really not complicated. None of it matters. We can make all the case we want, but you’ve gotta win the game this weekend. That’s what we’ve got."

Beating a top-15 South Carolina, an SEC team, would almost certainly give the Tigers the boost they need to get into the playoff. There's little embarrassment in losing to Georgia, and avoiding the ACC Championship game means Clemson will have no more than two losses.

And they can't really put a three-loss Alabama team in ahead of two-loss Clemson, can they? Surely not…right?

If they do, you can bet Swinney will be repeating his "ROY" claim to everyone who'll listen.