Swinney Is Rock of Clemson Program

Even with 10 gallons of Gatorade – orange, naturally – dripping off him, and clad in a gray Clemson sweatshirt right out of George Costanza's wardrobe, Dabo Swinney may still have been the most neatly manicured man in Memorial Stadium.

Consider that a lesson about the unflappable nature of bookish Clemson coach. Not even a Gatorade ambush can stray so much as a hair from the coach's gameplan.

"This is just an extremely special day," Swinney said of the Tigers' 34-21 victory over Virginia, a win that came hours after they clinched the ACC's Atlantic Division, Clemson's first title of any sort since 1991.

It was a belated birthday present for Swinney, who turned 40 Friday and was serenaded with "Happy Birthday" by 77,000 purple-and-orange well-wishers, a going away gift for C.J. Spiller and Clemson's talented senior class, and something of an anniversary present for all involved.

In the 13 months since Clemson athletics director Terry Don Phillips selected the wide receivers coach and recruiting coordinator to succeed Tommy Bowden, bypassing several other more proven coaches on Bowden's staff, the man with part in his hair crisper than a wide receiver's route has become the unmovable center of the Clemson program.

So, fittingly, after the biggest win of his career, Swinney gave the game ball to Phillips.

"I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for him," Swinney said in the postgame press conference. "He had a vision, believed in me and had the vision to see something in me, to give me an opportunity to lead this program and go against the grain. A lot of people probably didn't want me to get this job, and a lot of people probably don't want me to have this job. But I got it, and we're division champs."

Technically, the Tigers were division champs before they ever took the field. Boston College's loss to North Carolina, which went final in the minutes before the Tigers ran onto the field, assured the Atlantic Division to Clemson.

And at the auspicious moment in program history, Swinney issued a proclamation for the program, perfectly in keeping with the eyes-on-the-prize coach who may very well eat breakfast by blueprint.

"There's no celebrating,'' he told his team. "You're division champs, but champions take care of business and you've got business out on that field."

The Tigers complied fully.

After a back-and-forth first half that featured three touchdowns a surprising number of gadget plays from the Cavaliers, one of the nation's least productive offenses, Swinney and the Tigers adjusted after halftime.

They went into the locker room with a 24-21 lead, but forced the Cavaliers into three-and-outs on each of the Wahoos' first three possessions while tacking on the game's final 10 points. In the fourth quarter alone, the Tigers managed six sacks. Virginia didn't dent the scoreboard again.

"We didn't play smart in the first half," Swinney said. "We weren't disciplined with our eyes. And they had a lot of trick plays in the first half. Our staff made great adjustments at halftime and we challenged them in the second half. This team never gave up, and they came out in the second half to win this game."

And for the first time in recent memory, Clemson is getting better as the season wears on. Under Bowden, the leaves weren't the only orange crashing to Earth every autumn. The Tiger were right there wilting with them. A season ago, Clemson began the season ranked No. 9 in the nation, but were blown out by Alabama in the season opener and would lose four of five from late September until early November.

This season, the Tigers flopped early in a grimacing loss to Maryland. But instead of waiting the familiar Clemson fall, Swinney rallied his squad in a heated team meeting.

"It was a great lesson," he said. "We didn't all take genius pills and become smarter. We just grew as a team."

Now the Tigers are headed to Tampa to face Georgia Tech, the team Swinney debuted against last year. He was twice lost to the Yellow Jackets, both in the narrow fashion, including a 30-27 loss this year after the Tigers shook off a 24-0 deficit.

But even amid the celebration, Swinney was already back to business.

"Our first goal was to clinch the ACC Atlantic Division, and we did that," Swinney said. "Our next goal is to win a state championship against South Carolina next weekend. Our third goal is to win the ACC Championship game. Our fourth goal is to win a Bowl game. We're happy today, but we're not done yet."

Information from the Associated Press was used in this story.