What We Learned: Swinney has big incentive to win

Sporting News' Matt Hayes analyzes what Tuesday's buzz means to college football. Dabo's cash grab  A big payday awaits Dabo Swinney if he leads Clemson to the top of the ACC. OK, now we know why Dabo Swinney is one excited coach these days. His hot team is on the verge of playing in its first ACC championship game.  And then there's this: If the Tigers win the ACC, his salary jumps from $800,000 a year to $2 million a year. The Post and Courier of Charleston, S.C., reported the specifics of Swinney's performance-laden contract: • If Clemson wins the Atlantic Division—something the Tigers never did under former coach Tommy Bowden—Swinney's guaranteed compensation increases from $800,000 to the median of all ACC coaches. That number is $1.7 million. • If the Tigers win the ACC, his salary increases to the average of the top seven coaches in the ACC—or $2 million. Swinney currently is the ACC's lowest-paid coach,...