"Dabo’s dynasty is done" says Paul Finebaum after Duke hands Clemson a humiliating 28-7 loss

If you like an underdog story, you woke up with a smile on your face on Tuesday morning. Dabo Swinney's Clemson Tigers were left stunned in their season opener against the Blue Devils of Duke, falling 28-7. The victory is historic for the North Carolina school, which hadn't beaten a top 10 school since 1989. George Bush Sr. was president back then. Ronald Reagan had just left the White House.

Their own mistakes cost Clemson the game.

It was also the first time in the Blue Devils' history that they defeated a ranked school in their season opener. Scenes of total delight came out of Durham. Well, delight from everyone but Dabo Swinney. He was at a loss to explain what happened in his postgame news conference:

"In all my years of football, I've never been part of a game like that."

The world of football wasn't as cryptic as Swinney in reacting, praising Duke coach Mike Elko and the entire Duke team, but scathing the Clemson coach for his aversion to the transfer portal and lack of support for NIL deals.

ESPN's Paul Finebaum was direct in his assessment of the situation on "Get Up":

"Dabo's dynasty is done."

Is Dabo Swinney the problem at Clemson?

Paul Finebaum reminded the audience that this is the third loss out of the last four games for Dabo Swinney and Clemson. He then proceeded to lambast the coach for his news conference antics:

"Dabo's nonsense after the game isn't going to impress anyone. This program is flatlining."

Over on "Undisputed" on Fox, Skip Bayless made an argument that Clemson had been lagging behind in the recruitment efforts due to Dabo's aversion to the transfer portal and his lack of support for student-athlete remuneration through NIL deals. To Bayless, Swimmey may be creating an environment in which future recruits will want to avoid Death Valley as a destination.

Clemson paid for its mistakes on Monday night, falling from No. 9 in the preseason AP Poll all the way down to No. 25. Duke, on the other hand, was rewarded, going from unranked to No. 21.

No team has lost its season opener and gone on to make the playoffs. Clemson's hopes cling to the possibility of the Tigers beating No. 4 Florida State in three weeks' time.