Clemson falls 34-21 to Syracuse: Explaining Tigers' worst start since 2004

Morgan Moriarty

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Clemson falls 34-21 to Syracuse: Explaining Tigers' worst start since 2004 image

Things are getting interesting in Clemson.

On Saturday, the Tigers were looking for a much-needed win, after opening the season with losses to LSU and Georgia Tech. 

They didn't find it.

Instead, the Tigers fell 34-21 to unranked Syracuse. Dabo Swinney's team entered as 7.5-point favorites against the Orange, having won the last six straight against Syracuse. But Fran Brown and the Orange came to play, leading 24-7 at halftime, and putting up over 400 total yards in the upset victory.

Syracuse even had to deal with a lengthy weather delay before the second half. 

The loss drops Clemson to 1-3 on the year, with some of the toughest opponents still remaining in front of it. It's been awhile since Clemson has started 1-3, so let's take a look at what it means for Dabo Swinney's future. 

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When was the last time Clemson started 1-3?

It’s been over two decades since Clemson started 1-3. The last time was in 2004, under then-head coach Tommy Bowden. Bowden, who led the Tigers before Dabo Swinney, finished his Clemson career with a 72-45 overall record. That 2004 team ended the season 6-5.

Bowden eventually resigned midseason in 2007 after a 3-3 start, paving the way for Swinney to take over as interim head coach. Swinney guided the Tigers to a 4-3 finish and was named Clemson’s full-time head coach in December.

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Why is Clemson off to a 1-3 start?

There are a few reasons for Clemson's slow start. One of the biggest is the inconsistent play of Tigers quarterback Cade Klubnik. Entering Saturday's game, Klubnik had completed just 59 percent of his passes for 633 yards with three touchdowns and three interceptions, having thrown a pick in his first three games. 

Klubnik was a preseason Heisman favorite, and was expected to have a big season under second-year offensive coordinator Garrett Riley. 

Klubnik had flashes of solid plays against Syracuse's defense. He had this dime of a touchdown pass in the first quarter: 

And late in the second quarter, he hit his running back Adam Randall to cut Syracuse's lead to 10:

But overall, he struggled to give Clemson consistent momentum on offense. He finished with 37 completions for 363 yards and three touchdowns and an interception.  

On a fourth down conversion attempt late in the third quarter, Klubnik got stuffed on a fake pitch attempt: 

The Clemson crowd responded with several boos. 

The home Clemson crowd was quite frustrated with the offense all day, as the unit had three three-and-outs in the first half. The Tigers scored just ___ points in the second half, and getting just one possession that lasted longer than seven plays adding another __ three-and-outs. Klubnik had several misses on the day, like this one: 

He did throw a nice touchdown to make it a two-score lead with nine minutes left, but there just wasn't enough time. Clemson got the ball back with 6:22 left, but Klubnik threw three straight interceptions followed by a game-sealing interception on 4th-and-10. 

He had another three straight misses on passing attempts late in the fourth quarter, as well. 

Clemson’s biggest struggles in 2025 have also come on defense. Under first-year coordinator Tom Allen, the Tigers entered Saturday’s game allowing 338.6 yards per contest. In Week 1, Clemson gave up 356 yards to LSU, including 6.8 yards per pass, and were outgained by 95 yards in the loss.

The defense showed some improvement against Troy, surrendering 301 total yards, though the secondary still allowed 7.2 yards per throw. The Tigers did hold Troy’s rushing attack to just 78 yards.

Georgia Tech dominated the time-of-possession battle, controlling the ball for 32 minutes. In the fourth quarter, the Yellow Jackets limited Clemson to a single possession, keeping the ball for nearly 10 minutes. Tech regained possession with 3:26 left and ran the clock down to one second before Aidan Birr’s 55-yard game-winning field goal.

Clemson has struggled to get off the field all season, ranking 122nd nationally in time of possession entering Saturday. The Tigers gave up 433 yards and 34 points to Syracuse, including a touchdown pass from backup quarterback Rickie Collins in the third quarter that extended the Orange’s lead to 34-14. Collins entered for an injured Steve Angelli. 

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Has Syracuse ever beaten Clemson before?

Saturday's game marked the first time that Syracuse left Death Valley with a win. It was also the first win for Cuse over the Tigers since 2017. That year, Syracuse upset Clemson 27-24 at the Carrier Dome during a Friday night game: 

Syracuse has a 3-10 overall record against Clemson, with wins coming on Saturday, in 2017 and in the Gator Bowl in 1996.  

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Will Clemson fire Dabo Swinney?

That's the question on a lot of people's minds after the latest Clemson loss. For starters, it's important to point out that Swinney's buyout is around the $60 million mark. 

Secondly, Swinney is Clemson's winningest head coach of all time. He has a 181-49 overall record, good for third in the FBS behind just Kirk Ferentz (206) and Brian Kelly (198). He's brought two national titles to Clemson, 18 bowl victories and another nine ACC championships. 

He knows the pressure is on him, too. At media availability this week, Swinney went on a lengthy rant about the perception surrounding Clemson having a down year: 

Swinney is a character in college football, so any time he says something like this it's going to get attention. He's been known to make grandiose statements like this before, too. 

He once famously said that the day players get paid and college athletics is professionalized, he likely won’t be coaching anymore. Players across the country are able to make millions off NIL deals, in addition to the incoming revenue sharing that’s set to come as soon as 2025. All the while Swinney is still very much coaching, making over $11 million per year.  

He also joked in 2022 that Clemson built its early signing period class using “God’s name image and likeness.” He's also been resistant to using the transfer portal. 

In Nov. 2024, the head coach seemingly reversed his NIL stance stating stating “nobody’s going to have more money than Clemson”  regarding Clemson’s plans for NIL with the new revenue-sharing structure. 

Just this past offseason, Swinney brought in a player from the portal for the first time, in receiver Tristan Smith.

Swinney’s statements aside, he has a point—it’s rare for Clemson to have down seasons under his leadership. There have been only three campaigns with fewer than double-digit wins: 9-5 in 2009, 6-7 in 2010, and 9-4 in 2023.

Even if Clemson finishes with a losing record this year -- which would be just the second under Swinney -- it seems unlikely the program would move on from him after one difficult season.

Clemson remaining schedule

Here's a look at Clemson's remaining schedule. As you can see, there are some pretty big matchups ahead. 

DateOpponent
Oct. 4@ UNC
Oct. 11@ Boston College
Oct. 18Vs. SMU
Nov. 1Vs. Duke
Nov. 8Vs.  No. 7 Florida State
Nov. 14@ Louisville
Nov. 22Vs. Furman
Nov. 29@ South Carolina

If things continue to trend downwards at Clemson, expect the Swinney-focused conversations to continue the rest of the season.

Morgan Moriarty

Morgan Moriarty joined The Sporting News as a content producer in the fall of 2024. Her sports journalism career started at the University of Florida in 2012, where she graduated in 2015. She has covered college football and basketball, the NFL and numerous other major sports for outlets like the Tampa Bay Times, Saturday Down South, UPROXX Sports and SB Nation. She also covers college football for Bleacher Report, and is a featured guest on various CNN programs.