“This is just an utter failure”: Joel Klatt rips into Dabo Swinney as Clemson hits breaking point after Syracuse loss

College football analyst Joel Klatt ripped apart Clemson coach Dabo Swinney for the team's slide in the first four games of the 2025 college football season, which hit a breaking point after losing 34-21 to Syracuse on Saturday.

The former Colorado quarterback, who now works as a color commentator and analyst for FOX Sports, let his feelings be known about the 1-3 Tigers in Monday's episode of "The Joel Klatt Show: A College Football Podcast."

Klatt prefaced his statement with his preseason bracket, which had Clemson winning the college football national championship. He then admitted to making a mistake in picking Clemson for the title and then slammed Swinney and his men for having a horrible start to the season.

"I don't know what to learn from this. This is just an an utter failure from Clemson," Klatt said (Timestamp 45:49). "An utter failure. There's no other way to put it."

The analyst appeared to wonder how the Tigers' downward spiral came to fruition despite having arguably one of the best coaches in the nation and some potential first-round draft picks in the 2026 NFL draft playing for the team.

Klatt went on to say that something's broken at Clemson and took a shot at Swinney's rant days before the game against Syracuse. He believes that Swinney, who has a $60 million buyout clause, will remain at the school unless something drastic happens in the coming months.

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Clemson coach Dabo Swinney holds himself accountable for the loss at Syracuse

Clemson coach Dabo Swinney took responsibility for the 34-21 whipping at the hands of Syracuse on Saturday.

Swinney told the media he'd been in similar situations before as a coach and managed to lead the team to the conference championship.

“It all falls on me, it’s my responsibility,” Swinney said. "I think we lost down here. We’ve had a couple of those type of moments, you just keep playing the games."

The veteran acknowledged the negativity that is hounding the team following the 1-3 start. He admitted he can't control the past, but they can control their destiny moving forward, beginning with the Oct. 4 showdown with the Bill Belichick-coached North Carolina Tar Heels.

It will be the 132nd meeting of both teams, with the Tigers leading the all-time series at 73-44-4. A win at Kenan Stadium would help improve Clemson's chances in the ACC Championship and possibly the College Football Playoff.