Dabo Swinney gets upset, goes on long rant after reporter asks about Trevor Lawrence's health
Clemson QB Trevor Lawrence has struggled so far this season, not looking like the world-beater who led the Tigers to a dominant win over Alabama in the national title game last year.
Recently, there has been some speculation about whether Lawrence has been injured or not, so one reporter decided to ask coach Dabo Swinney about it.
That, for some reason, led to an incredibly long rant from Swinney, saying people just want to create drama within the Tiger program (via 247Sports):
“No I’m not confirming any of that,” Swinney said. “And I don’t want anybody texting me anymore. I had a media guy text me the other night. You know, that’s private information. That’s private information. If I want anybody to know our medical stuff, I’ll tell you. We’ll put it on the injury report. But people texting me on my phone to ask me information that’s not public information that I wouldn’t put out unless it’s something that needed to be put out– that’s bad business.
“There’s nothing wrong with Trevor. And I don’t like people trying to create drama. There’s no drama on this team. So what do people want to do? They want to create drama. It’s the most unbelievable thing. Ain’t nothing wrong with Trevor. Zero. Nothing. If we did an MRI, that ain’t nobody’s business. We do MRIs all the time. ALL the time. All the time. I mean a guy gets a bruise on his knee, we do an MRI. Guy bruises his elbow we do an MRI. It’s like we’ve got to find– it drives me crazy. There’s no drama on this team, so it’s like we’ve got to create some. ‘Oh, Trevor missed a throw. He must be hurt.’ No— he’s human. He’s human, alright.
“So here’s what I’m ‘confirming’: Trevor Lawrence is a great football player. And a great leader. And there ain’t nothing wrong with him. He had a bruise. He had a bruise. If there was something wrong with him, would we be running him on the goal line? I mean he’s run great. There ain’t nothing wrong with him. If he missed a throw, it’s because he missed a throw. Period. He’s not whatever– all these people need to relax. He’s a human. And he’s met every expectation. We are 5-0 and he’s done a great job.
“I’m not getting into medical information that I don’t put out there, especially that he gets a bruise in the Texas A&M game. There ain’t nothing wrong with him. Nothing. Zero. Had his best game at Syracuse. Played a great game up there. Ain’t nothing wrong with him. So all the drama– I’m hot about this because I got a text at home last night and I was pissed. Because it’s like, ‘Oh my God there’s some conspiracy going on.’ No! I tell y’all the truth. I try to be transparent and honest. If there’s something wrong, I would let people know. There’s nothing wrong with him! Nothing! Zero! So people need to get over themselves and quit creating drama when there is none. Zero! Drives me crazy. I’ve been mad about it since last night.”
So, did the Tigers do an MRI on Lawrence or not? If he continues to struggle, the questions will continue.
Swinney does deserve some credit for acknowledging that he wasn’t mad at the reporter who asked the question during his press conference. Instead, he said, he was frustrated about getting a text from a media person at home the night before.
To see Swinney’s full rant on the MRI question, check out the 4:25 mark of the below video: