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By Rowan Fisher-Shotton
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Dabo Swinney opened the 2026 college football season in about the worst way possible: a 51-10 blowout loss to Lane Kiffin's LSU Tigers.
Losing on the road in a vicious environment like Death Valley can happen to anyone. But when you lose by 40 points in the first game of what was supposed to be a bounce-back season, questions understandably begin to emerge. And after last season's disappointment — a 7-6 finish marking Swinney's lowest win total since 2010 — buyout rumors have started to take hold.
Swinney spoke with reporters on Tuesday and was asked whether he regrets any of the decisions he made over the offseason reconstructing the roster.
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"No, I don't. I don't, man. I regret being 0-1 right now. I regret that. But no," Swinney said. "Can you ask me that at the end of the season? The season isn't over. I mean, we've got one game, we've got 11 more. What if we go 11-1? Promise me you'd ask me that then, then I'll answer it, all right? But I'm not answering questions like that."
"They give you 12 games. And at the end of the year you count them up, all right? And that's when those types of questions are fair to me. You know, not after one game. To maybe the best team in the country," Swinney added. "We've got 11 more games to go battle. And we'll count them up. Then you can ask me whatever question you want."
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After the LSU loss, CBS Sports' Robby Kalland reported that Clemson could save $3 million if the school fires Swinney during the 2026 season, dropping his buyout figure from $60 million to $57 million.
Still, that's a massive number and would be among the biggest buyouts in college football history. Texas A&M took a record $76.8 million hit when it fired Jimbo Fisher in 2023, and LSU's buyout for Brian Kelly last season was $53.8 million.
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But Swinney has accomplished more at Clemson than either of those coaches did at their respective schools, so firing him outright — both for financial and reputational reasons — feels unlikely. But college football is a wild sport, and anything can happen.
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