Dabo Swinney says Syracuse made a 'great decision' to keep Dino Babers

No. 5 Clemson is set to take on No. 14 Syracuse this weekend, the third ranked opponent it will have faced in the last five games. The Orange are one of the most surprising stories in college football, unbeaten at 6-0 just two years after Syracuse decided to keep Dino Babers following a 1-10 campaign in 2020.

Not many coaches survive 1-10 seasons, especially not when that season comes in their fifth year with the program. Clemson coach Dabo Swinney is a big fan of Syracuse’s decision, though.

“Dino’s got a great track record,” Swinney said Wednesday. “He’s always won and obviously they, I think COVID was a real issue for them, as well, as it was for everybody. They were hit pretty hard and I think it affected them greatly. But he’s an excellent coach.”

Syracuse bounced back from the pandemic-impacted 2020 season relatively well, winning five games a year ago.

Still, many publications had Babers as one of the college football coaches on the hot seat entering 2022. He’s since erased his name from most of those lists after starting off 6-0.

“They’ve had a lot of injuries, they’ve had a lot of things they’ve had to battle through, but he’s one of the more steady people out there,” Swinney said. “I think they made a great decision, obviously, in continuing to believe in their coach. He’s really good. One of the toughest teams that we compete against every single year. Really happy for him that he’s had a great year. Pull for him all but this one.”

Dino Babers out to keep Syracuse unbeaten

At 6-0 overall and 3-0 in the ACC Atlantic division — the lone unbeaten remainin in the division outside of the Tigers — Dino Babers can keep Syracuse in the national consciousness by doing the improbable this weekend.

Scratch that, he could actually elevate the Orange to multi-decade heights.

It’s improbable, of course. Syracuse will enter Saturday’s contest as a 13.5-point underdog on the road. But the last time the Orange were ranked this high in the AP Poll was 2001. The last time Syracuse ranked higher than its current spot at No. 14 was 1998.

But again, it certainly won’t be easy. And Swinney seems to know better than to overlook Babers and his squad.

Clemson and Syracuse will kick off at noon ET on Saturday with a broadcast on ABC.