Clemson’s Next Coach: Top 5 Best Candidates If Dabo Swinney Is Fired

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CLEMSON, SOUTH CAROLINA - JULY 31: Head coach Dabo Swinney of the Clemson Tigers takes questions from the media during a press conference at Clemson University on July 31, 2025 in Clemson, South Carolina. (Photo by Katie Januck/Getty Images) — CLEMSON, SOUTH CAROLINA – JULY 31: Head coach Dabo Swinney of the Clemson Tigers takes questions from the media during a press conference at Clemson University on July 31, 2025 in Clemson, South Carolina. (Photo by Katie Januck/Getty Images) Getty

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VIRGINIA - AUGUST 29: Head coach Tony Elliott of the Virginia Cavaliers leaves the field after a game against the NC State Wolfpack at Scott Stadium on August 29, 2026 in Charlottesville, Virginia. (Photo by Ryan M. Kelly/Getty Images) — CHARLOTTESVILLE, VIRGINIA – AUGUST 29: Head coach Tony Elliott of the Virginia Cavaliers leaves the field after a game against the NC State Wolfpack at Scott Stadium on August 29, 2026 in Charlottesville, Virginia. (Photo by Ryan M. Kelly/Getty Images) Getty

ANN ARBOR, MICHIGAN - AUGUST 30: Head coach Jason Eck of the New Mexico Lobos walks on the field after the game against the Michigan Wolverines at Michigan Stadium on August 30, 2025 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. (Photo by Raj Mehta/Getty Images) — ANN ARBOR, MICHIGAN – AUGUST 30: Head coach Jason Eck of the New Mexico Lobos walks on the field after the game against the Michigan Wolverines at Michigan Stadium on August 30, 2025 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. (Photo by Raj Mehta/Getty Images) Getty

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VIRGINA - SEPTEMBER 04: Quarterbacks coach Jason Beck of the Virginia Cavaliers watches his team warm up before a game against the William & Mary Tribe at Scott Stadium on September 4, 2021 in Charlottesville, Virginia. (Photo by Ryan M. Kelly/Getty Images) — CHARLOTTESVILLE, VIRGINA – SEPTEMBER 04: Quarterbacks coach Jason Beck of the Virginia Cavaliers watches his team warm up before a game against the William & Mary Tribe at Scott Stadium on September 4, 2021 in Charlottesville, Virginia. (Photo by Ryan M. Kelly/Getty Images) Getty

BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA - OCTOBER 25: Head coach Brian Kelly of the LSU Tigers arrives prior to a game against the Texas A&M Aggies at Tiger Stadium on October 25, 2025 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. (Photo by Tyler Kaufman/Getty Images) — BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA – OCTOBER 25: Head coach Brian Kelly of the LSU Tigers arrives prior to a game against the Texas A&M Aggies at Tiger Stadium on October 25, 2025 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. (Photo by Tyler Kaufman/Getty Images) Getty

BOULDER, COLORADO - SEPTEMBER 12: Head coach Deion 'Coach Prime' Sanders of the Colorado Buffaloes reacts on the field during warm-up prior to the game against the Weber State Wildcats at Folsom Field on September 12, 2026 in Boulder, Colorado. (Photo by Andrew Wevers/Getty Images) — BOULDER, COLORADO – SEPTEMBER 12: Head coach Deion "Coach Prime" Sanders of the Colorado Buffaloes reacts on the field during warm-up prior to the game against the Weber State Wildcats at Folsom Field on September 12, 2026 in Boulder, Colorado. (Photo by Andrew Wevers/Getty Images) Getty

Clemson faces one of the most complicated situations in college football with head coach Dabo Swinney. Could Clemson do the unthinkable and fire Swinney?

The legend is one of the top coaches in Clemson’s history, but things have been trending in the wrong direction for Swinney’s squad in recent years. Even if Clemson did want to cut ties with Swinney, the program faces a challenge given the coach’s buyout is at least $57 million, per CBS Sports’ Brandon Marcello and Matt Zenitz.

Swinney is on a massive 10-year, $110 million contract slated to go through 2031, per Yahoo Sports. A win over North Carolina will do little to quiet the noise around Swinney’s future, while a loss could intensify chatter about a potential coaching change.

Time will tell if Clemson will surprisingly pull the plug on the Swinney era.

Here’s a look at some potential candidates to replace Swinney if (and it is a big if) Clemson does eventually cut ties with the coach.

No. 1 Virginia Head Coach Tony Elliott

NC State v Virginia — GettyCHARLOTTESVILLE, VIRGINIA – AUGUST 29: Head coach Tony Elliott of the Virginia Cavaliers leaves the field after a game against the NC State Wolfpack at Scott Stadium on August 29, 2026 in Charlottesville, Virginia. (Photo by Ryan M. Kelly/Getty Images)

Elliott was a longtime Clemson assistant before taking the Virginia job in 2022. After a slow start to his tenure in Charlottesville, Elliott has Virginia back as a top-25 program.

The question is whether Clemson would want to hire someone with close ties to Swinney.

No. 2 New Mexico Head Coach Jason Eck

New Mexico v Michigan — GettyANN ARBOR, MICHIGAN – AUGUST 30: Head coach Jason Eck of the New Mexico Lobos walks on the field after the game against the Michigan Wolverines at Michigan Stadium on August 30, 2025 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. (Photo by Raj Mehta/Getty Images)

New Mexico’s Jason Eck has emerged as one of the top head coaches outside of the Power Four conferences. Eck won at Idaho and transformed New Mexico into a winner in just his first season.

No. 3 Michigan Offensive Coordinator Jason Beck

William & Mary v Virginia — GettyCHARLOTTESVILLE, VIRGINA – SEPTEMBER 04: Quarterbacks coach Jason Beck of the Virginia Cavaliers watches his team warm up before a game against the William & Mary Tribe at Scott Stadium on September 4, 2021 in Charlottesville, Virginia. (Photo by Ryan M. Kelly/Getty Images)

If Clemson opts to go the assistant route, Michigan offensive coordinator Jason Beck could be atop the list. Beck is widely viewed as one of the top coordinators in college football.

“Kyle Whittingham is bringing his hot-shot play caller to Ann Arbor as the first major acquisition for Michigan’s staff,” CBS Sports’ Brad Crawford wrote in a January 6, story titled, “Ranking college football’s top coordinator hires: Michigan, Florida building great staffs ahead of 2026 season.”

“Utah ranked second nationally in rushing at 269.7 yards per game and fifth nationally in scoring at 41.1 points per game under Beck’s tutelage.”

No. 4 Former LSU Head Coach Brian Kelly

Texas A&M v LSU — GettyBATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA – OCTOBER 25: Head coach Brian Kelly of the LSU Tigers arrives prior to a game against the Texas A&M Aggies at Tiger Stadium on October 25, 2025 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. (Photo by Tyler Kaufman/Getty Images)

Brian Kelly’s tenure with LSU went down in flames, but Clemson fans would likely take his resume in Baton Rouge over the current situation.

Prior to his last two seasons at LSU, Kelly had seven consecutive seasons posting 10 or more wins dating back to his time at Notre Dame. Kelly proved to be an interesting fit in the South but would allow Clemson to hit the reset button by hiring someone with plenty of head coaching experience.

No. 5 Colorado Head Coach Deion Sanders

Weber State v Colorado — GettyBOULDER, COLORADO – SEPTEMBER 12: Head coach Deion “Coach Prime” Sanders of the Colorado Buffaloes reacts on the field during warm-up prior to the game against the Weber State Wildcats at Folsom Field on September 12, 2026 in Boulder, Colorado. (Photo by Andrew Wevers/Getty Images)

Deion Sanders is likely waiting for another ACC job to come open in Florida. Could Clemson turn to Coach Prime for a hard reset in South Carolina?

Sanders’ tenure at Colorado has had its ups and downs. Yet, it is hard to argue with Sanders’ ability to transform a struggling program back into national relevance.

This article was originally published on HEAVY

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