Dabo Swinney says Clemson must 'settle in' and correct early mistakes

It’s been a rough start for Clemson on Monday night against Duke. Early in the second quarter, the Tigers were still scoreless as they trailed the Blue Devils by a score of 6-0 and had passed for only 28 yards.

Clemson missed a field goal on its second drive of the game that would have put it up 3-0 and coughed up a fumble to start the second quarter. The defense also made its fair share of mistakes with some missed tackles but thankfully has at least avoided giving up a touchdown.

Dabo Swinney joined the ESPN broadcast midway through the game, saying the Tigers simply have to “settle in” and get past some of the nerves that come with playing in a season opener.

“We’ve gotta just hang in there and settle in,” Swinney said. “Obviously missed the field goal, but really just fundamental stuff. We missed a couple of tackles, turned the back loose right there and the wheel route. So just some thing we can get corrected. But hey, got a long way to go. We’ve just gotta settle in and keep playing right now. We’ve gotta get a stop right here.”

Shortly after Swinney’s interview, Clemson got its opportunity when Duke receiver Jalon Calhoun muffed a punt to give the ball back to the Tigers at the Blue Devils 18-yard line. Clemson took advantage, going on to score a touchdown within five plays as Cade Klubnik found running back Will Shipley to take a 7-6 lead.

Still, the Tigers offense will have to show it can drive the ball downfield if it hopes to hang on to that advantage. With five minutes remaining in the half, they had just 126 yards of offense and were 2-of-6 on their third down conversions. Klubnik is 11-of-17 for 62 yards and a touchdown in the early going.

Dabo Swinney reveals what he is most excited to see from Clemson vs. Duke

The Clemson defensive line is getting plenty of attention heading into the 2023 season. However, that is not the position group Tigers coach Dabo Swinney is most excited to see in the opener against Duke.

Instead, Swinney is anxious to see his offensive line Monday night in Durham. Swinney loves what he has seen from his offensive line during the preseason and believes the group is getting overlooked.

“I wanna see our offensive line, you know,” Swinney said. “I think these guys — they’re excited to go play. I mean I want us to win because of them. I hope that’s what I see.”

Clemson returns four starters on its offensive line after losing only left tackle Jordan McFadden from last year’s unit. Swinney believes he has a group that is talented and deep heading into the season.

“Excited to see these guys play. These guys have put in a lot of work,” he said. “It’s a tough group. They’re a close group. We’ve got some depth. We’ve got some guys that deserve to play.”