Clemson Tigers head coach Dabo Swinney is 1-2 in his career against the Georgia Bulldogs. Swinney and Clemson split the series with Georgia in 2013 and 2014. The Bulldogs emerged on top in the latest meeting between the two schools, which was the 2021 season opener.
Swinney has been the head coach at Clemson since 2009, and he has helped the Tigers win a pair of national championships. However, Clemson’s last championship came in 2018. The Tigers have lost momentum in recent seasons and are coming off a 9-4 season in 2023. Clemson has plenty of talent, but needs things to come together at a few key positions if the Tigers are going to knock off Georgia.
“Usually, you only get opportunities like this in the postseason in the playoffs in a national championship,” Swinney said. “This just happen to be on our schedule, so it’s a great opportunity to play the best team in the country right out of the gate.
“Kirby (Smart) has done a tremendous job down there and they got a lot of guys back. You know, starting on the offensive side, I mean, you got a a Heisman quarterback he’s a very, very good football player. They’ve lost two games in three years.”
Georgia has won two national championships since beating Clemson in the 2021 season opener. Swinney is impressed with Georgia quarterback Carson Beck.
“Defensive side … same thing. You know, big long athletic, physical. Got pass rushers. They got some sub package stuff that they do where they’re going to get their best rushers on the field. You live in third long on these guys. It’s a really a tall task, so, you know, one of the best safeties you’re going to see in the country. No. 24 (Georgia safety Malaki Starks) great player.”
The Georgia-Clemson game starts at noon ET on Saturday (Aug. 31) and can be seen on ABC.