Dabo Swinney took over as head football coach at Clemson halfway through the 2008 season. In the nine-and-a-half seasons since, Swinney has led the Tigers to 101 wins, seven-straight (and counting) 10-win seasons, four ACC championships, and one National Championship.
In an outstanding new book by Seth Davis, the author interviews several of America’s top coaches to find out what makes them tick. Davis points out that one of the things that makes Dabo Swinney so unique is the joyful attitude he brings to his work.
While many coaches are best-known for their stoic (sometimes curmudgeonly) demeanors, Swinney stands out with his overwhelmingly positive perspective…
While Swinney’s Christian faith has inspired him to persist despite all the lousy things that have happened, it also imbues him with a desire to keep things joyful.
This is a rather uncommon notion in the football world, and in the coaching profession in general. Most coaches barely take time to acknowledge their wins, much less enjoy them, but not Dabo. He’d rather break into goofy dances in the locker room, or lift up ESPN sideline reporter Jeannine Edwards after that bowl game win over LSU.
He tries to strike that same work-and-play balance inside his program, scheduling a family night every Wednesday for his coaches. … Swinney goes to similar lengths to make sure his own family feels like a priority.
When I interviewed Swinney in Clemson a few weeks before his team’s appearance in the 2016 College Football Playoff semifinal, I asked him if he felt sorry for all those coaches who believe that sustained focus, and sometimes sustained misery, is an important part of the job.
“Yeah, I do, because I think life is so short. It’s just the blink of an eye, and we’re gone,” Swinney said. “When people put winning up top, they become miserable. Even when they win, it’s a relief. We’re never gonna be like that here. We’re always gonna have fun.”
He continued, “I’m always giving [my players] perspective on life, because I don’t want the game to be too big. What’s the worst that can happen? You lose a ball game? Hey, let’s just put everything into it, and when you look at the man in the mirror, as long as you did your best, you can live with whatever result you got.
“Sometimes you don’t win, and that’s okay, you know? The season always starts tomorrow.”
— Seth Davis, from his book Getting to Us
Dabo Swinney’s positive outlook and joyful attitude is refreshing in a profession that doesn’t always praise such a perspective.
Swinney’s attitude reminds me of Buck O’Neil, the legendary baseball player-manager who believed you couldn’t be your best if you didn’t bring joy to your profession every day.
Dabo Swinney is true to himself. He believes strongly in the values of faith, family, and having a positive attitude. He lets that attitude shine through and he doesn’t try to hide it. He believes work should be joyful and he doesn’t care if other people think work and play should be separated.
Swinney is genuine, which is another vital key to his success.
When I was growing up in the ‘80s and ‘90s, I always admired the way Lou Holtz brought wit, humor, and optimism to the serious business of big-time coaching. His attitude and values made him a role model for me. When faced with difficult decisions, I’d often ask myself, “What would Lou do?”
That simple technique always brought instant clarity to the situation and resulted in a decision I felt good about.
Today, I see Dabo Swinney exuding the same positive values and perspectives I want to emulate. The more I learn about Dabo, the more I admire him.
These days, I often find myself asking, “What would Dabo do?”
The answer I come up with immediately makes me feel more positive and focused.
