Swinney Finalist for Four Coach of the Year Awards

Clemson, S.C.—Clemson Head Coach Dabo Swinney is a finalist for four national Coach of the Year Awards.   Swinney has the Tigers ranked No. 1 in the nation according to Associated Press, Amway Coaches Poll and the College Football Playoff Poll entering the bowl season.

Swinney is a finalist for the Associated Press Coach of the Year, the Bear Bryant Award, the Munger Award and the Bobby Dodd Award. He was also a finalist for the Eddie Robinson Award presented by the Football Writers Association, but that honor was awarded to Scott Frost of Central Florida.

Swinney has been named a National Coach of the Year four times in the last six years. He won the Bobby Dodd Award in 2011, was the FCA National Coach of the Year in 2013 and won 10 different coach of the year honors in 2015. Last year when the Tigers won the National Championship he was won the Bear Bryant Award for the second consecutive year. He is the only coach to win that honor two years in a row and is a finalist again this season.

Now in his 10th season as Clemson Head Coach, he has posted a record of 101-29. He is just the fourth coach in FBS history with at least 100 wins in his first 10 years as a head coach, joining Urban Meyer, Chris Petersen and Bob Stoops.   He has led Clemson to eight top 25 final rankings in his nine full seasons (including this year), and has seven bowl wins, second most in ACC history. He is just the fourth coach to reach 100 wins as an ACC coach.

Clemson has been ranked for 51 consecutive weeks, a school record, including 42 straight in the top 10, also a school record and tied for the longest active streak in the nation.   At Clemson he is second in career wins behind Frank Howard’s 165 and is first in wins over top 25 teams with 26. That includes an 11-1 record in head to head meetings with top 15 teams over the last three years.

This year Clemson is 12-1 overall with an ACC Championship game victory over No. 7 Miami by a 38-3 score.  That was Swinney’s fourth ACC Championship, his third in a row. It is the first time in 29 years Clemson has won three ACC Championships in a row.