Everything Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney said after loss to South Carolina

Clemson head football coach Dabo Swinney spoke to the media following the team’s 17-14 loss to South Carolina on Saturday. Here’s everything he had to say.

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Opening statement

“Well, first of all, congratulations to Shane (Beamer) and South Carolina. I mean, what an unbelievable college football game. That was college football at its best, for sure. I thought both teams both laid it on the line. It was an incredibly physical game. And games like that usually come down to a couple plays. That’s what happened, and they made the couple plays.

“But we had every opport(unity)… We never trailed in the game ’till, what a minute, eight (seconds)? And we go right down the field and we just make one mistake right there, but you got to give them credit. Again, they made a couple of plays. Obviously, the quarterback – I mean, he made two of the greatest runs you’re ever going to see. He was spectacular – just, incredible individual effort by him, and (he) was certainly the difference in the game.

“So, third-and-15 there late, we got a spy on him, and he was just better than us right there. He made an unbelievable play. Then, I was really proud of how we responded. Obviously, we’re in position to, at a minimum, get a field goal. We’ve got a timeout, we’re in a good spot. And we just made a bad decision right there. We wanted to take a shot outside, and for some reason, he scrambled. Even if it’s complete, it doesn’t help us. Now, I got to use the timeout. So, just one mistake.

“But, man, I thought I thought the kids competed their butts off. I mean, you saw the heart of the team. These games are, obviously, painful when they don’t go your way, anytime you lose – but, certainly, when you lose a rivalry game. I thought Cade (Klubnik) played his heart out. We just missed a few play plays. We had a slant that probably might go to the house, and we were inches off. But you saw some young guys out there really compete their tails off. And then I thought, defensively, they were relentless in creating some turnovers. It was, again, (a) very physical game. But at the end of the day, I thought Sellers was the difference in the game.

“I thought our crowd was awesome. I mean, it was probably as loud as I’ve heard (Death) Valley in quite a while. It was an incredible environment. And, man, it’s really disappointing that we couldn’t reward them with the win. Again, we had every opportunity (and) didn’t get it done. So, you got to give credit where credit’s due, and that’s to South Carolina – they got it done.

“So, for us, as I said going in, we had a good year. We could have had a great year, but you got to win that game to have a great year. But we’re 9-3. We got better in a lot of ways this season, in our regular season – so many positives that we can build on. We got a heck of a team – a lot of the core of our guys will be back. I thought our quarterback – even though, like I said, he had a critical mistake right there at the end – he had a heck of a year and really did a lot of great things. So, (we have) a lot to build on.

“But, man, this one… This is tough, and it hurts. It really hurts when you lose a game like that. And, again, I thought both teams laid it on the line. I mean, (they) absolutely competed to the last play. And at the end of the day, they (South Carolina) made the two plays that were the difference. So, credit to them.”

On LaNorris Sellers’ performance

“I mean, he was he was special. Again, there was just a couple times we had him. We had a few sacks. I don’t know what the number was… What do we have, three sacks? Is that what we had? (We) probably should have had six. And he just escaped – and you saw that on tape. He’s won a couple of games for them. I saw the same thing in the Missouri game. We had a couple that we had him – like, big-time, negative yardage – and, somehow, he got out. And then the couple of runs were just huge. The first one was a scramble run. And, just, he’s fast, he’s strong, he’s a really good player, he’s a competitive guy. And he was just a little bit better on a couple of those plays that were the difference in the game.

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“Again, we had plenty of opportunities. We missed a couple opportunities on offense to capitalize that were disappointing. But, again, that’s championship football. It was a great college football game, for sure. Both teams wanted it. Both teams competed with everything they had. And they made a couple critical plays that ultimately made the difference.”

On whether Swinney received explanation for officiating calls

“There were several questionable things out there today, but we still had plenty of opportunities to win the game. We had it set up – (it) just got look like we got stepped on, and we’re tripping. So, the play didn’t just get up. It was the right situation, and I think we were going to have a good a good play right there. (It) just was a tough break. We thought he (Phil Mafah) was down, but all the reviews went against us today. And then, I think we had a completed pass when they blew the whistle on that one. There’s been some strange things happening this year that I really don’t have any explanation for. But, again, we had every opportunity. They had some tough breaks, too.”

On whether Swinney’s decision for Clemson to attempt a fourth-down conversion on its second drive

“Yeah, (it was a) missed. They made a good play, and it was a huge, huge missed opportunity right there. That’s one of them. When it comes down to two plays, those are things that you look back on and, just, man, it’s frustrating. So, that was a huge play for them.

“We thought we’d get it. If I kicked the field goal, then you’re probably saying, Why didn’t you go for it in fourth-and-inches?’ But we just made a decision in the moment that we believed in, and it didn’t work. They they made the stop.”

On the performance of Clemson’s offensive line

“They protect protected well. I thought they really protected well. That was a real positive in the game. We never felt stressed. There was another one (where) they sacked us. We thought they were offside, but they never felt stressed. I thought they held up really well. So, that was a positive from it.”

On Sammy Brown’s absence in some of Clemson’s fourth-quarter plays

“We (were) just working the packages that we’ve worked all week. (There’s) nothing wrong with Sammy (Brown) or anything – we just we got in a little bit more nickel (plays). We got into some some, what we call, ‘cyclone,’ as well, especially on some of the long-yardage stuff. I’m feeling like they’re going to have to change the how they were going to play but nothing more than that.”

On future Palmetto Bowl matchups where South Carolina is a competitor

“They’ve always been a competitor. I mean, I’ve always had respect for this rivalry – it’s a great rivalry. But this is just one game. They won today. They’re state champions this year. It’s a year-to-year deal. But, again, I think Shane deserves a lot of credit for the season that they’ve had they’ve had. They’ve had a great season, and we’re both 9-3 We had an opportunity to really have a great season with a win today, and we didn’t get it done.

“But, again, it’s always been a competitive game. Last year was a competitive game. I’ve been in a bunch of these – it’s my 21st game, so (I’ve) been in a bunch of them. But it’s all about this game ,and we didn’t get get it done today. So, you give them credit and keep moving.”

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On Swinney’s message to Clemson’s seniors

“Just, your heart breaks for them. I mean, it’s just part of it when you sign up for this deal, and you’re part of high-level competition. Sooner or later, it ends. And we all want to write the script that we want for it to end. Sometimes, it goes the way you want it, but, oftentimes, it doesn’t. But at the end of the day, ‘How’d you play?’ Those guys competed their butts off, man. Barrett (Carter) – he came up with a big fumble recovery today. I can’t ask more of our guys than what I saw today from a heart standpoint, a competitive (standpoint). They were physical. Sometimes, you just get beat, and you got to give the opponent credit. I mean, they made a couple of great plays – and that’s the bottom line. And, sometimes, that happens.

“Again, we never even trailed ’til one minute, eight (seconds) in the game. Our kids competed their tails off. We had a couple critical mistakes that cost us. They made a couple of great plays that they just made. And that’s what great players do. I saw a great player in (LaNorris) Sellers today – I mean, that was pretty special. There was a couple (plays) you just tip your hat, and you got to give him credit for that. (He) seems like a great young man, seems like a great leader. But I thought the heart was on full display on both teams. And it’s a shame somebody’s got to lose the game. But there’s going to be a winner and a loser – and today, we lost, and they won. So, (we) got to own that.”

On Clemson defenders’ ability to limit Sellers

“Certainly, you try to hang on, but I give him credit. I mean, we had him dead to rights a few times, and all you got to do is watch… What was this, game 12? Just watch every game it’s like it’s a rerun. It doesn’t matter who they’re playing – everybody they played, he did that. So, (it) certainly wasn’t just us. I mean, we made some great plays on him, too. We did some really good stuff, but he made a couple of the biggest plays in the game that were the difference in the game. I mean, the two runs were spectacular. The third-and-15 – you’re two downs from winning the game right there, and he runs off a 20-yard touchdown run on third-and-15 with a spy, and he just escaped and made a play.

“But if you watch all 12 games, it’s the same thing every week. He was a huge difference for them. This year, their quarterback was a huge difference in them being (9-3). We’re not 9-3 without our quarterback our quarterback he had two great plays with his legs today. We certainly aren’t sitting here where we are without him having the type of year he had, and Shane would be the first to tell you they’re not where they are without without the year that their quarterback had. It’s two great quarterbacks battling it out today, and he was the difference in the end.”

On the performance of Clemson’s defense as a whole

“I mean, it’s rare that we win the turnover margin and lose – that’s a very rare thing. And, again, that happened today. But Cade – I think he had a hundred, or something, completions or throws in a row without an interception. And, again, that was just a bad decision right there in that situation. Like I said, even if it’s completed, we’re going to have to kick it in that spot, as opposed to just throw it away or whatever. We’re trying to win the game. We had plenty of opportunities to win the game in that situation – and with a timeout to kick the field goal.

“But, yeah, I mean, win the turnover margin, get beat – and it’s couple plays. You think, at least, you’re going to probably go to overtime right there, but it was a great college football game – there’s no denying that. It stinks to be on this side of it, but that was a hell of a college football game and a bunch of young people battling it out with everything they got, and we came up short.”

On Swinney’s frustration with Clemson’s pass rush

“Yeah, we’ve been much better. I thought we had a couple games… Obviously, the Louisville game was a poor performance – we had a bad day. But we really rallied back (and) did a great job at Virginia Tech and Pitt. Again, we did a really good job at times today, but their quarterback just made some plays that created some problems for us. It’s just got to keep getting better. We got good players, and we got a lot of guys back. And, again, those kids are are going to keep improving.”

On RJ Mickens’ injury status

“I don’t have anything.”

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On what Swinney wants Klubnik to take away from Clemson’s final series

“It’s a great learning opportunity for him. Like I said, just, the situation right there – we were really just were trying to just take a shot outside to the end zone, and for some reason, he flushed. Okay, that’s fine. I think it was first down, might have been second down. Was it first or second down? (It was) second down, so, yeah, just throw it away if you didn’t… There’s no reason to create the scramble. And, like I said, with that situation, even if it’s complete to Mafah – if it’s the first quarter, that’s fine. But if it’s complete to Mafah right there, we’re going to have to use the last timeout and kick it.

“So, that’s just a decision he’ll learn from right there. (He) should have just thrown it out of bounds, and let’s go to third down. We got one more shot, and then, we kick it, and we we go to overtime and see what happens. He made a lot of great plays, and I know that play will be magnified – and that was a mistake. So, he’ll learn from that. That kid’s got a lot of football ahead of him, and he’s hurting from it. And, again, their kid (Demetrius Knight) made a good play. I mean, that was a tough, tough play. Tips are usually picks, and that was what happened in that situation. It was a nice play by him.

“So, he’ll learn from it. He’ll file it, just like he learned from a lot of mistakes last year and came back, and he had a great year this year. At the end of the day, that’s one play in a great year that kid had. But it was a heck of a drive down the field – a heck of a drive. Hey, we didn’t finish it.”

On how Swinney feels knowing this year’s Palmetto Bowl was winnable

“Yeah, it’s (a) missed opportunity. I mean, I’ve done this a long time. There’s been a lot of opportunities that haven’t gone on my way. You only really lose in life if you quit – just keep going. I mean, this is football. Sometimes you get beat. (You) never ever want to lose a game. I wish I could tell you that every year we go undefeated and never lose a game, and that’s not reality. There’s a lot of high stakes. (It was a) missed opportunity, and we had it – just didn’t get it done.

“Again, sometimes, you got to give the opponent credit. And they deserve credit because I thought they made the critical plays. And we had every opportunity – we didn’t do it. But you pick yourself up, and you get back in the fight, you keep moving – that’s it. I mean, there’s nothing else to say about it other than congratulations to the opponent. You’re disappointed that it didn’t go your way, but you got to keep going.

“We got another game. I’m not sure where we’ll play, or whatever, but we’ll have another game and an opportunity to, hopefully, finish with a win, and a 10th win, and another postseason win, and build on that. (There’s) a lot of football ahead, and that’s why we’ve had such a great program for a long time. It hasn’t always gone perfect – we just keep going. You keep going. We’ve had some really, really good moments, and we’ve had some really, really crappy moments. But we have a great program because we’ve always kept going. That’s what we’ll continue to do.”

On Clemson players’ plans after the loss and whether he will watch the Miami-Syracuse game

“Everybody’s pissed. There’s a lot of disappointment, man. There’s no gathering. We didn’t get the job done today. But, yeah, certainly I’ll watch and see what happens. Whatever God’s got for us, he’s got for us – that’s just how I look at it. We’ll know our our next step here pretty soon, and then pick ourselves up, dust off and see if we can go finish the way we want to finish, and then, learn and grow from everything this year and see if we can get better for next year.”

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