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Dabo Swinney didn’t raise his voice Tuesday, but he didn’t mince his words either.
As Clemson (3–5, 2–4 ACC) prepares to host Florida State (4–4, 1–4), the Tigers’ head coach used part of his midweek press conference to issue one of his strongest public challenges yet — not to his players, but to the college football officiating system itself.
“We’ve lost our way,” Swinney said. “There needs to be public accountability. Period.”
Swinney argued that college football has evolved into an NFL-style, playoff-driven enterprise with immense financial and professional stakes, the structure overseeing referees hasn’t kept pace.
“These refs should be — like the NFL — full-time refs,” he said. “It needs to be a job, and there needs to be one leader and one voice.
Coaches get crucified, fined. Players get crucified. But refs have zero accountability. They get to go home and drink a beer and get on with their life and just leave the carnage behind.”
The comments came after Swinney discussed how playoff expansion has heightened pressure across the sport, creating a system where “coaches are getting fired at an alarming rate” and yet the one group directly influencing games remains largely insulated.
He went further, pulling back the curtain on how programs can submit officiating reviews. Clemson, he said, is allowed to turn in 10 calls per game for conference review.
“We had a game earlier this year that we lost,” Swinney said. “I had 14 I wanted to turn in, but I can only turn in 10. Five of the 10 were wrong. These are game-changing calls, and the response is, ‘This will be addressed with the crew.’ That’s it.”
Swinney’s frustration echoes a growing sentiment among college coaches who want more transparency in officiating. Nick Saban and Lincoln Riley have both advocated for nationalized oversight and public accountability. Swinney’s version goes a step further — calling for full-time officials, centralized leadership, and the ability to review “egregious” calls in real time.
“Everybody should have consequences,” he said. “The coaches and the players shouldn’t be the only ones who publicly have accountability.”
For a Clemson team fighting to salvage its season and its pride, Swinney’s words reflect both exasperation and conviction — not just about one game or one call, but about what he sees as a sport losing its balance.
“It means too much,” he said. “People are losing jobs. It’s impactful. The system needs to change.”
