Dabo Swinney on NFL players going back to college: It's embarrassing, we have no rules

Published September 2, 2026 05:20 AM Clemson coach Dabo Swinney is preparing to open the season on Saturday against LSU, which has been at the forefront of attempting to get players who were on NFL rosters back into college football. And Swinney made clear on Tuesday that he is not a fan of the way NCAA eligibility rules have changed to make that possible.“It’s kind of embarrassing, honestly. It’s just embarrassing that that’s where we are. I doin’t blame the kids, people trying to take advantage of the system, I just think it’s embarrassing where we are with college football, and we’ve been there for a while,” Swinney said.Swinney said he’d like to see college football establish clear rules that can won’t get overturned by judges, as has happened repeatedly when players have sued to regain NCAA eligibility.“It’s embarrassing. I mean, it really is. We have no rules. There’s no governance. I mean, it’s a joke. There’s zero rules. And when you enforce rules someone just goes and finds a judge to say, ‘No, you can’t enforce that rule.’ Never did I think we’d be living in an era like this, but that’s where we are,” Swinney said.LSU has been attempting to add pass rusher Jack Pyburn, who was in training camp with the Buccaneers, and tight end Dae’Quan Wright, who was in training camp with the Browns. Pyburn was claimed on waivers by the Chiefs and now plans to stay in the NFL. Whether Wright will play against Clemson remains to be seen.“I actually got to go watch practice in June with the Browns, so I’m probably going to get turned in for tampering,” Swinney joked. “Been watching the preseason games with the Bucs and the Browns and all that.”