Living his best life

These days - and for the last couple of years, in fact - it’s good to be Dabo Swinney.

As the Clemson head football coach always says so eloquently says, “the fun is in the winning.” Well, Swinney and his family are having a blast.

The year of 2019 started off with a bang for William Christopher Swinney as his Tigers won their second national championship in three years, something that we’ve mentioned on this site maybe a few times recently. Clemson was undefeated, and Swinney, to this day, still has not taken a loss this year.

He currently has a stranglehold on the recruiting world as his 2020 class sits at the top of college football. Four five-star players have made their recent pledges to head to upstate South Carolina, topped off by the most recent commitment of the No. 1 quarterback in the country, DJ Uiagalelei.

Swinney got to witness firsthand the magic of his favorite numbers, 4 and 13, come into play at the NFL Draft. Three Clemson players were drafted in the first round. Clelin Ferrell was No. 4 overall to the Oakland Raiders, Christian Wilkins was No. 13 to the Miami Dolphins, and Dexter Lawrence was No. 17 to the New York Giants. Swinney made sure that everyone knew this was destined, that four plus 13 equals 17.

And of course, after all the winning on the field, Swinney was rewarded with his second contract extension in three years. Clemson’s Board of Trustees approved a 10-year, $93 million-contract for Swinney, giving him the largest contract in college football history.

So, what would you do with everything going your way and a little time on your hands?

Well, the Swinneys decided that they would go on a sports tour for the ages in a week’s span. It was a trip most sports fans were left drooling over.

He started the week off by checking out game three of the Western Conference Finals in Houston as the Rockets took on the Golden State Warriors. The Rockets won that game and Swinney was seen hanging out before the game with NBA Commissioner Adam Silver.

Swinney then took the family to St. Louis on that Monday to see the Cardinals take on the Philadelphia Phillies. The Cardinals beat the Phillies and Swinney was seen celebrating with Matt Carpenter as he entered the dugout after a home run in the fifth inning. Cardinals manager Mike Shildt called Swinney a “friend of the program.”

The next day, Swinney traveled across the border on Tuesday to Toronto, Canada to see the Raptors in action against the Philadelphia 76ers in a pivotal game five of the Eastern Conference semifinals. Swinney and his sons got to play pick-up basketball before the game and in typical Swinney fashion, Dabo’s grey Clemson shirt with an orange tiger paw on it was almost completely black due to being drenched in sweat.

The Raptors went on to win the game and Swinney met Drake, a rapper and ambassador for the Toronto Raptors. The photo circulating of the two together left many Clemson fans wondering if the infamous “Drake Curse” was imminent. You could say that Swinney brought the Raptors good fortunes, as they will now appear in their first Eastern Conference Finals.

The Swinneys were just getting started.

On Wednesday, the family went to Milwaukee to see the Brewers in action against the Washington Nationals. This time, the family wasn’t alone as Swinney was joined by former Brewers player Bill Spiers who is also an assistant at Clemson. The two threw out the first pitch.

Then, Swinney strolled over to watch the Milwaukee Bucks take on the Boston Celtics in game five of the Eastern Conference semifinals. It was a series-clinching victory as the home team Bucks won with Swinney in attendance. The theme continued.

Finally, on Thursday, the Swinneys caught a Chicago Cubs game as they took on the Miami Marlins. The Cubs, of course, won that game.

Six games in less than a week and, with Swinney in attendance wearing the home colors, the home team went 6-0. His good fortune on and off the field has now rubbed off on the teams he chooses to support live.

Who could he venture off and see visit next? If you knew Swinney was going to be at one of the Carolina Hurricanes’ NHL playoff games, we’d bet the house on the Canes-- even though they are down 3-0.

Swinney is on what could be viewed as the hottest streak of his career, and it’s fun to look at how his accomplishments have oozed over to the professional sports world for a bit. Not only is he enjoying life and the wins that come with it, but Swinney is also blazing a trail full of national recognition.

As former Clemson receiver Mike Williams said on Twitter, you turn on the television and the national championship coach is “everywhere.” We can’t think of a time where a recent championship coach has taken the time out of work to just enjoy some of the benefits of the success he’s earned.

And another thing, this type of trip where Swinney is recognized everywhere can only help recruiting. This was just another example of him showing that it’s “cool” to be a Clemson Tiger right now. His message: it’s OK to have some fun along the journey off the field. Because after all, that fun is in the winning.

So while the summer is only just getting started and pretty soon the Tigers will be back to work, it’s been interesting to watch how Swinney has taken some time to genuinely soak in what success has brought him and his family.

As Clemson receiver Justyn Ross said, “(Swinney) is living his best life.”