Clemson is disappointed, hurting and in unfamiliar spot. Where do Tigers go from here?

Dabo Swinney appeared in the postgame press conference Saturday night in an unfamiliar situation. His demeanor reflected as much.

Clemson’s head coach spoke to reporters with what seemed like disappointment and confusion in his voice after the Tigers lost to North Carolina State 27-21 at Carter-Finley Stadium.

The Tigers have only lost three regular season games over the past six years. A month into the 2021 season, they’ve lost twice.

“We’ve got a lot of work to do, and that’s just kind of where we are right now,” Swinney said. “But we’ve got a bunch of good people involved. … It’s disappointing, for sure. We’re not very good right now. That’s why we’re 2-2. It’s my job to get us better.”

While Clemson has been a powerhouse program for the better part of Swinney’s tenure, the Tigers have looked average this year with problems and lapses that are uncharacteristic of a lofty standard established by two national championships and six-straight playoff appearances.

Social media would lead you to believe Clemson’s reign is over and the program is headed into an abyss, never to be seen or heard from again — that feels like an overreaction, but it also remains to be seen.

The Trevor Lawrence and D.J. Uiagalelei comparisons have been unavoidable because of how much the latter was talked up during the offseason. There wasn’t supposed to be any offensive dropoff and the Tigers’ defense was expected to rival the “Power Rangers” defensive unit of 2018. Only one of those projections have come to fruition.

The offensive struggles are legitimate and have been creeping up since the season opener against Georgia. The Tigers lost that game but then turned in two wins, neither of which was close to being clean. The squad got by Georgia Tech with a 14-8 win on Sept. 18, but N.C. State wasn’t as gracious. The Wolfpack took the Tigers to the wire and came out with the double overtime victory, the first over Clemson for the program since 2011.

Clemson ended Saturday’s game with 214 total yards of offense, a stark contrast to the numbers of yesteryear. They only ran 49 plays to the Wolfpack’s 96 and were on the field for just 18 minutes, 12 seconds. That meant the defense, which had its own uncharacteristic penalties Saturday, was out there for a whopping 41 minutes, 18 seconds.

“It has a cumulative effect,” defensive coordinator Brent Venables said. “No. 1, you gotta be more efficient to get off the field. Guys had to pipe down and take more reps than they like to take. I’m just thankful for the guys I have and the fight, the toughness and love for each other. We had a chance to win the game at the end because of their resolve.”

While Swinney and the coaching staff have chalked up some of the offense’s sub-standard performances to growing pains, it seems to be so much more. Until the scoring drive in the fourth quarter, the Tigers didn’t have a third-down conversion and finished the game 2 for 11.

Uiagalelei was 12 for 26 with an interception and two touchdowns for 111 yards and 99.7 passer rating. A few of his incompletions were overthrows while others were dropped passes from freshman Beaux Collins and redshirt junior Justyn Ross. Swinney made it clear that Uiagalelei is still QB1 but has work to do when it comes to improving on the field.

Where the run game was able to get going against the Yellow Jackets, the Wolfpack’s run defense continued its dominance there and didn’t give up much, though Clemson tried to force it. The Tigers had nine rushing yards after the first half and ended the game with 103.

With the health of freshman running back Will Shipley in question and senior Lyn-J Dixon entering the transfer portal, that position now has to be examined.

The team now heads back home to play a Boston College team that served as Uiagalelei’s first-ever start as a freshman last year.

So what happens now?

“We have to re-evaluate everything,” Clemson offensive coordinator Tony Elliott said. “What’s best plan moving forward to win the next game? We did some self-scouting but at the end of the day it is our job as coaches to put together a plan to give the kids opportunity to be successful. Then they have to do their part and make plays.”

Swinney said the last time the program has struggled this much offensively was “probably 2010,” his second full season as the head coach — it was the Tigers’ last losing season and the last time they didn’t reach the 10-win mark.

As Swinney spoke after the game, he described a locker room full of hurt players and coaches who aren’t used to being in this position. Outside of Carter-Finley, across South Carolina and the country are Clemson fans who aren’t used to it either, but that’s where the Tigers are right now.

Clemson isn’t going to become irrelevant in one season, but fixing blaring issues are a must to prevent a downward spiral..

“We have a lot of guys who have not experienced this, absolutely,” Swinney said. “This is an opportunity for us to grow, teach. … We’ve had a 2-3 team my first year that went on and played for this league’s championship, so it hurts. All we can do is focus on what we can control.”