Dabo Swinney emphasizes the Clemson basketball team's achievements in the 2024-25 season

Clemson football coach Dabo Swinney has voiced his opinion on the achievement of the Clemson basketball program in the 2024-25 season. After reaching the Elite Eight for the first time ever in the 2023-24 season, the Tigers returned much better this year, showcasing brilliance in the regular season.

With another historic March Madness campaign widely anticipated, the Clemson men's basketball team unfortunately fell to McNeese State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The 69-67 upset in the hands of the Cowboys pretty much ruined what has been a largely successful season for coach Brad Brownell and the Tigers.

However, Dabo Swinney doesn't want everyone to forget what the current group accomplished this season before the bitter ending came their way. The Tigers finished the season with a 27-7 record, marking the highest number of wins in a single season in the school's history.

“I've been here 23 years, I've seen 23 basketball seasons,” Swinney said, per Jon Blau of The Post and Courier. “It's incredible what that bunch did this year. It was awesome. I think that should be celebrated.”

"I know everyone wants to go win it all, win the tournament, and all you remember is the last game. But, man, we can't lose sight of what they accomplished. That was really special to watch. I mean, incredible.”

Dabo Swinney shares his thoughts on two impressive freshmen in spring practice

While Dabo Swinney commended what the Clemson men's basketball team achieved this season, he's hoping to get his own team back on track next season. The Tigers football team is already in the middle of its spring practice with a lot of anticipation for 2025 across the landscape.

According to Derrian Carter of the Greenville News, Swinney was asked which players impressed him the most during the spring period. The coach named two freshmen before the others mentioned them. Those were Gideon Davidson and Amare Adams.

"He's physically impressive, further along than I thought he would be coming in," Swinney said on Davidson. "He looks like a kid that's been in college about three years. Really smooth athlete, a lot of confidence, fast. He's done a nice job picking things up well."

He also gave his review of how Adams has performed so far in the spring practice.

"He's come in here as a freshman and does not look like a freshman and just doesn't play like a freshman," Swinney said. "There are times when he does, but there's times when it's like, 'Wow, that guy is really different.'

Davidson and Adams appear to be on track for significant roles with the Tigers in 2025 as they've gained the confidence of Dabo Swinney very early. The college football landscape has seen a host of true freshmen impress on a large scale in the last couple of seasons.