SoCalPatrick
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Dabo Swinney’s incomprehension of capitalism and his lousy metaphors won’t derail Clemson football. What could, though, is the veteran coach's persistent reluctance to embrace evolution within college athletics.
Swinney, in a recent interview with ESPN, painted himself as a relic while his sport speeds into a present where players are allowed to earn money off endorsements and may freely transfer without penalty.
Regardless of Swinney’s stance on these changes, the toothpaste shows no sign of re-entering the tube. Rather than adapt, Swinney clings to the myth of amateurism.
Swinney defended his $8.5 million salary by telling ESPN “we live in a capitalist society.” Yet, he argued that college athletes earning money devalues their education. In Swinney’s phony capitalism, universities (many of which, including Clemson, are government funded), coaches and administrators bathe in riches from a product supplied by athletes who do not earn wages.
“The head of Delta probably makes a lot more than the people who are checking your baggage in,” Swinney pontificated, “but those people are as vital as anybody.”
Two issues with that metaphor: Baggage loaders earn wages; also, college athletes aren’t metaphorically loading luggage onto College Athletics Airlines. The athletes are the dang pilots. Without pilots, there is no airline industry. Without athletes, there is no college athletics.
As Swinney played the hits, he explained his distaste for transfers.
“We're also not doing our job as coaches and recruiters if we're bringing in a bunch of transfers,” Swinney said, before adding that he’s open to transfers who address specific roster needs.
It's fair for Swinney to question whether relying on transfers would hamstring a program from signing, retaining and developing talent, but surely Clemson can add some impact transfers without sacrificing its roster model, particularly to help offset 11 departed transfers.
While Swinney is wary of transfers, rival South Carolina added A-list quarterback Spencer Rattler and nemesis Alabama welcomed three all-conference-caliber transfers.
While Swinney worries about whether endorsement deals are fool’s gold for athletes, Texas A&M signed a No. 1-ranked recruiting class and Tennessee earned a commitment from five-star quarterback Nico Iamaleava. To what degree NIL deals influenced those developments is difficult to quantify, but know this: Before last summer’s NIL policy change, the Aggies had never signed a No. 1-ranked recruiting class, and Tennessee hasn’t signed a five-star quarterback since 2002.
While Swinney clings to the past, SEC schools are using the transfer portal and an unregulated NIL market to enhance their grip on the future.
Swinney isn’t the only coach bemoaning changes that prefaced an offseason of unprecedented wheeling and dealing mimicking professional free agency, minus the contracts.
But, like it or not, he must play the hand dealt.
Nick Saban’s adaptability to on- and off-field changes has helped keep Alabama at the head of the table for more than a decade. Last summer, Saban was quick to tout that quarterback Bryce Young had bagged endorsements worth about a million bucks.
That served as a bat signal to recruits: Playing for Alabama can generate big bucks.
Swinney’s message, by comparison: Relish that free education, kiddos.
“I've always been about education and the collegiate model and the collegiate experience,” he told ESPN, “and I don't think what's been created now is healthy for the game.”
Never mind that earning coin is not proven to detract from “the college experience.”
South Carolina coach Shane Beamer should remind recruits of Swinney’s comments at every opportunity. Erect billboards screaming: Play for the Gamecocks, where we believe maximizing athletes' profitability enhances the college experience … unlike the fuddy-duddy down the road.
There’s room for an athlete to compete at a high level, collect NIL deals and earn a degree. Universities and their employees should welcome the responsibility of providing athletes with the education, support and structure to manage those responsibilities.
Under Swinney, Clemson’s success throughout the 2010s was trumped only by Alabama. But in an era when players can earn money off endorsements and freely shop themselves to other schools, the coaches who embrace and trumpet their athletes’ profitability seem best-equipped to attract and retain talent.
Swinney’s resistance to evolutions within his sport threatens Clemson's standing, while SEC programs charge into the new frontier.
www.tidesports.com
Swinney, in a recent interview with ESPN, painted himself as a relic while his sport speeds into a present where players are allowed to earn money off endorsements and may freely transfer without penalty.
Regardless of Swinney’s stance on these changes, the toothpaste shows no sign of re-entering the tube. Rather than adapt, Swinney clings to the myth of amateurism.
Swinney defended his $8.5 million salary by telling ESPN “we live in a capitalist society.” Yet, he argued that college athletes earning money devalues their education. In Swinney’s phony capitalism, universities (many of which, including Clemson, are government funded), coaches and administrators bathe in riches from a product supplied by athletes who do not earn wages.
“The head of Delta probably makes a lot more than the people who are checking your baggage in,” Swinney pontificated, “but those people are as vital as anybody.”
Two issues with that metaphor: Baggage loaders earn wages; also, college athletes aren’t metaphorically loading luggage onto College Athletics Airlines. The athletes are the dang pilots. Without pilots, there is no airline industry. Without athletes, there is no college athletics.
As Swinney played the hits, he explained his distaste for transfers.
“We're also not doing our job as coaches and recruiters if we're bringing in a bunch of transfers,” Swinney said, before adding that he’s open to transfers who address specific roster needs.
It's fair for Swinney to question whether relying on transfers would hamstring a program from signing, retaining and developing talent, but surely Clemson can add some impact transfers without sacrificing its roster model, particularly to help offset 11 departed transfers.
While Swinney is wary of transfers, rival South Carolina added A-list quarterback Spencer Rattler and nemesis Alabama welcomed three all-conference-caliber transfers.
While Swinney worries about whether endorsement deals are fool’s gold for athletes, Texas A&M signed a No. 1-ranked recruiting class and Tennessee earned a commitment from five-star quarterback Nico Iamaleava. To what degree NIL deals influenced those developments is difficult to quantify, but know this: Before last summer’s NIL policy change, the Aggies had never signed a No. 1-ranked recruiting class, and Tennessee hasn’t signed a five-star quarterback since 2002.
While Swinney clings to the past, SEC schools are using the transfer portal and an unregulated NIL market to enhance their grip on the future.
Swinney isn’t the only coach bemoaning changes that prefaced an offseason of unprecedented wheeling and dealing mimicking professional free agency, minus the contracts.
But, like it or not, he must play the hand dealt.
Nick Saban’s adaptability to on- and off-field changes has helped keep Alabama at the head of the table for more than a decade. Last summer, Saban was quick to tout that quarterback Bryce Young had bagged endorsements worth about a million bucks.
That served as a bat signal to recruits: Playing for Alabama can generate big bucks.
Swinney’s message, by comparison: Relish that free education, kiddos.
“I've always been about education and the collegiate model and the collegiate experience,” he told ESPN, “and I don't think what's been created now is healthy for the game.”
Never mind that earning coin is not proven to detract from “the college experience.”
South Carolina coach Shane Beamer should remind recruits of Swinney’s comments at every opportunity. Erect billboards screaming: Play for the Gamecocks, where we believe maximizing athletes' profitability enhances the college experience … unlike the fuddy-duddy down the road.
There’s room for an athlete to compete at a high level, collect NIL deals and earn a degree. Universities and their employees should welcome the responsibility of providing athletes with the education, support and structure to manage those responsibilities.
Under Swinney, Clemson’s success throughout the 2010s was trumped only by Alabama. But in an era when players can earn money off endorsements and freely shop themselves to other schools, the coaches who embrace and trumpet their athletes’ profitability seem best-equipped to attract and retain talent.
Swinney’s resistance to evolutions within his sport threatens Clemson's standing, while SEC programs charge into the new frontier.
Dabo Swinney's old-school ways threaten Clemson football dynasty, while SEC evolves | Toppmeyer
Dabo Swinney's persistent reluctance to embrace evolution\u00a0within college athletics runs in contrast to SEC programs that are adapting to the changes.
www.tidesports.com
