Swinney and Kelly Disagree on Report Cards
Swinney Hands Out a 58 and 65, Brian Kelly Sees It Another Way
You have to love a little fun back and forth, and the Dabo Swinney and Brian Kelly banter gives us one more round.
Today during Dabo’s press conference, Swinney gave his take on the way the game went in Saturday’s 17-10 loss against LSU. After pointing out the many mistakes of his own quarterback Cade Klubnik, along with some criticisms of the offensive coaching philosophy, he made a point to give a grade for both LSU and Clemson.
Swinney believes, “there was a lot of more good than bad” on Saturday night. Whether you agree or not, that is left to interpretation. Everyone sees the game differently, and opinions vary.
Dabo mentioned during his address that it was a one score game and stated the fact that LSU will score a bunch of points on people this season. That is something that feels certain. Garrett Nussmeier has the experience and the tools around him to get it done.
However, Swinney did not believe LSU played that well on Saturday night either. Looking deeper than the scoreboard, the story shifts.
I definitely think the scoreboard does not tell the whole story of the game one way or another. 17 to 10 could have been worse. Clemson received a couple of breaks to stop LSU on some drives that could have ended in touchdowns.
On the flip side, Clemson really shot themselves in the foot at times, but games are not decided by ifs, buts, or shoulda coulda wouldas. The end result is what really matters. Whether it is one point or twenty, a win is a win and a loss is a loss.
“It’s like getting the final exam day one of class. They made a 65, we made a 58. Neither one of us were great,” said Swinney.
LSU Head Coach Brian Kelly does not exactly see it that way. During his conference today, he of course caught wind of what Swinney said, and his account is totally different.
“We dominated them in the second half, so, he’s either a really good grader giving himself a 58, or he’s a really hard grader on us,” Kelly said. “Or he didn’t see the second half. Which that might be the case, he might not have wanted to see the second half.”
Anyway, it is on to week two, and Brian Kelly like Dabo and every other coach in the country is focused on the coming Saturday. He did finish by giving Clemson their credit, saying,
“Clemson is a darn good football team. That’s a top-notch team. And they’re going to be a team in the hunt for a playoff picture. And we hope we are too, but it was only one game. I don’t know if he’s a hard grader or an easy grader, but I like the way we played in the second half.”
Now that everyone has had time to dissect Saturday night and think on it, what is your grade?
