ARLINGTON, Texas—Second-ranked Clemson is in Dallas for its fourth consecutive trip to the College Football Playoff. Saturday it faces No. 3 Notre Dame in a showdown of undefeated teams in the Cotton Bowl.
Eleven seasons ago, the Tigers were preparing for a Gator Bowl matchup with Nebraska, head coach Dabo Swinney’s first game without the interim tag. They fell 26-21 to finish the season with a 9-4 record.
A lot has happened since that game and Clemson is experiencing unprecedented success as a program, that fans would not have believed after the loss to the Cornhuskers.
Tom Rinaldi interviewed Swinney for a SportsCenter Special on Monday and asked about the early days of the program and how the Tigers got to where they are.