Nick Saban Gives Dabo Swinney Advice, 'Game Has Changed, We Need to Change with It'

Former University of Alabama head football coach Nick Saban provided Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney with some words of wisdom during ESPN College Gameday on Saturday.

In response to a clip of Swinney talking about Clemson's success and being held to a higher standard than other teams, Saban called for Dabo to be adaptable (beginning at the 26:06 mark of the video):

"Dabo needs to look at what he needs to do in his program to make his program continually be successful," Saban said. "Do you have to change the portal? Do you have to change name, image and likeness? The game has changed. We need to change with it, otherwise you're not gonna put yourself in the same position other people are and having the chance to be successful."

Despite being widely viewed as the favorite to win the ACC for the ninth time in the past 11 seasons entering the 2025 campaign, Swinney's Tigers are off to a disappointing 1-2 start.

They fell 17-10 to a still-undefeated LSU team in Week 1, but last week's 24-21 loss to Georgia Tech was even more significant since it put Clemson at the bottom of the ACC with an 0-1 conference record.

Prior to Saban's comments, ESPN played a clip of Swinney speaking to the media this week. Swinney asked, "What's so bad about our program," before noting that Clemson's worst record in a single season over the past 14 years is 9-4.

Swinney, who has led Clemson to nine ACC titles and two national championships during that stretch, added, "Why are we held to a different standard than all of these other teams out there who ain't never won nothing?"

Like Swinney, Saban understands the pressures of trying to guide a perennial national title contender, as he guided LSU to one national title and Alabama to another six from 2009 to 2020.

Over his 17 seasons as head coach of the Crimson Tide from 2007 to 2023, Saban went 201-29, and the only season he finished with fewer than 10 wins was his first at the helm.

Of course, the college football landscape has changed significantly in recent years due to the advent of the NIL system.

Now, players often make decisions on where to commit or where to transfer based on the NIL deals they are offered.

College football has also started to mirror NFL free agency with the transfer portal, as high-profile players change schools every year.

Last year, Clemson and the three service academies were the only schools that did not bring in a single transfer.

The Tigers still managed to win the ACC and reach the College Football Playoff, but as Saban suggested, Swinney may need to be a bit more flexible moving forward in order to keep Clemson among the college football elites.