Dabo Swinney reacts to LSU firing Brian Kelly: ‘It’s like a bloodsport’

Dabo Swinney and Brian Kelly have had plenty of big-time battles over the years, including Clemson‘s 17-10 season-opening loss to Kelly and LSU. Eight weeks later, Kelly is on the unemployment line after being fired Sunday following a third SEC loss this season, effectively dooming LSU’s College Football Playoff hopes for a fourth consecutive year.

Swinney, in the midst of his own disappointing 2025 campaign at Clemson (3-4, 2-3 ACC), reacted to Kelly’s in-season firing Tuesday with a bit of acquiescence. Following Kelly’s ouster, LSU became the eighth Power Four opening before Halloween joining Arkansas, Florida, Oklahoma State, Penn State, Stanford, UCLA, and Virginia Tech.

“It’s a season of chaos, that’s for sure. It’s just the world we live in. It’s a crazy, crazy, crazy profession we signed up for,” Swinney said during Tuesday’s press conference. “But, as I said last night, it’s hard. You’ve got a lot of really good football coaches that have won a lot of games, but they’re getting fired because they really haven’t won championships. And you’ve got others that want you fired even though you’ve won championships. So it’s kind of a crazy world. But it’s the world we live in. And, you know, it’s like a bloodsport.

“Everybody loves to see people get fired I guess. There’s a part of society that likes to see that stuff. But it just is what it is, man. It’s what we signed up for,” Swinney continued. “You know, it’s all about the Playoff, and all that type of stuff. You’ve got to find a way to win, you don’t get much time anymore. … You’ve got to win quick.”

Given Clemson is in the midst of its third-consecutive four-loss season — and fifth straight with three or more losses — Swinney has faced his own hot-seat questions this season. That’s led to some fiery responses from Swinney, including Monday night.

Dabo Swinney calls out ‘logo schools’ in passionate defense of Clemson football

Clemson entered 2025 among the preseason favorites to not only return to the College Football Playoff but win the national championship as well. But at just 3-4 overall and with three ACC losses already, neither are likely outcomes for the Tigers this season.

Still, Dabo Swinney continues to defend all he’s accomplished across his 18 years as Clemson’s head coach. On Monday, that included calling out “logo schools” for not getting over the hump and actually winning national championships — something the Tigers have done twice under Swinney. After all, only Alabama, LSU, and Ohio State hold more national championships since the turn of the century.

“There’s a lot of logo schools out there that haven’t won a championship since Christopher Columbus sailed,” Swinney said via Chapel Fowler of The State Newspaper. “It’s hard to do … Everything we’ve done here, we’ve done multiple times.” He later added that Clemson is “built on the right stuff.”

But as the number of Power Four coaches receiving their pink slips grows with each passing week, Swinney pointed to his own championship success in defense of his Clemson tenure.

“A lot of guys are getting fired because they don’t have a track record of winning championships,” Swinney said. “And a lot of people want me fired despite a track record of winning championships. It’s a crazy profession.”

— On3’s Griffin McVeigh contributed to this report.