Dabo Swinney goes in-depth on how Clemson has benefited from NIL

The NIL era is entering its second year in college football. Dabo Swinney assessed what it’s done for his Clemson program so far — and he’s liking what he sees.

Swinney noted Clemson’s ability to keep up with the NIL landscape, notably through its NIL Collectives. He said he’s seeing the benefits for his program and what it’s doing for his players, especially with what they’re able to do within community.

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“It’s been great for us,” Swinney told reporters. “It really has. It’s been great. I know there’s a lot of unintended consequences that have come about because of the changes. Hopefully, those will smooth out or there’ll be some order put into place somewhere down the road. I know there are some crazy things that other places have dealt with and we just haven’t. I’m just being honest with you.

“I think it’s just, again, how we do things, how rooted and connected we are. I’m on year 20 here. I would hate to be starting out, I know that, and trying to manage everything that you’ve got to manage. Just getting going, trying to build a program, roster management, all those things. But it’s been great for us. It’s been awesome, man. It’s been great for our guys to have opportunities. We’ve got a couple great collectives out there … that, I think, align with who we are as a program as far as we’re purpose driven. It’s great to see our guys serving the community, it’s great to see our guys giving back and it’s great to see them have an opportunity to make some money.”

Dabo Swinney: Clemson has addressed changes in college football

Just like with other changes in college football — both on and off the field over the years — Swinney said he’s done his best to keep up with everything. He also pointed to the resources the Tigers have at their disposal, including an NIL coordinator who’s helping his players.

“I look at it as just as college football has changed, we’ve addressed all those things,” Swinney said. “When it was support staff, we needed to address support staff. When it was nutrition, we needed to address nutrition. … We’ve addressed all of these areas, but the purpose of our program has never changed. But there’s been spokes added and they all feed the purpose of the program, and that is to build great men through the game and equip them, to graduate them, to make sure they have a good experience and to win a championship. NIL has just become another area that needed to be addressed. It’s not the focal point. It’s not.

“But it’s important that just like the training room’s not the focal point, but you’d better have a good training room, right? It’s all a part of the focus of our program, which has not changed, but making sure we’ve got all the resources.

Swinney: I’m pleased with NIL’s impact on Clemson program

Dabo Swinney ended his nearly five-minute answer by saying he knows his role with regard to NIL. He wants to set his players up for success, and adding the resources he touted are the steps he took toward that. That’s why he’s happy with the impact NIL is having on the Tigers.

“My goal and my job, as I see it, is no different than anything else to give them every resource they need to be successful, to help them maximize and navigate the changes in college football and their new opportunities,” Swinney said. “Some of these guys, this might be their best opportunity while they’re in college.

“But [we can’t] lose focus on the main thing and to just educate them and to train them and to protect them because there’s a lot of things — these are young kids. … I’ve been really pleased with how it’s been here for Clemson.”