Joel Klatt lists hesitancy to change for why Dabo Swinney would not fit at Alabama

After 16 years at Clemson, the connections between Dabo Swinney and Alabama have come full circle following the retirement of Nick Saban. Even so, Joel Klatt doesn’t necessarily believe that he is the man for the job in Tuscaloosa.

Klatt assessed several candidates for the Crimson Tide’s gig, including Swinney, during his reaction show on Wednesday. While Swinney certainly has the resumé to warrant consideration, Klatt says his inability to adjust to the modern aspects of college athletics over the last few years might cost him the opportunity, especially considering how Saban himself proved he could adapt to them.

“Dabo? Well that’s interesting because he could go home. Here’s the problem – he has shown, over the last few years, that he has been incredibly rigid,” said Klatt. “Now, I think he’s an excellent coach. But not shifting as the sport shifted, I think, has really hurt Dabo. We see that in the record that Clemson has had.

“One of the things that Saban has done the best of maybe anybody is his willingness to evolve,” Klatt continued. “We’ve seen his willingness to evolve as the sport has changed, as the schematics have changed. He has evolved with it in order to stay ahead of it, in order to retain his standing as the best.”

It’s well-documented how Swinney feels about the transfer portal and name, image, and likeness. They haven’t been a focus for the Tigers since their institution and development in collegiate sports. As such, the program has seen some regression, at least from amongst the very best of the best in college football.

Swinney might just end up as being the guy for Alabama as the successor to Saban. However, it’s not a hire that Klatt feels would be very popular in T-Town, specifically after the last few seasons.

While he may be one of the better possibilities that’s left on the board, Klatt just doesn’t see Swinney as much of a home run hire now for the Crimson Tide as he may have a few years ago.

“In a lot of ways? Like, I don’t think the fanbase would even be all that thrilled with Dabo,” said Klatt. “It’s like, well, Dabo? The game kind of passed him.

“Now, he might return, he might shift and evolve. You know what? I hope he does,” Klatt said. “I think that that would be great if Clemson got back to a point that they were a couple of years ago. But, at this moment, I just don’t see that.”