Delusional Fans Like Those Criticizing Dabo Swinney Is What Make College Football The Greatest | Mark Harris
College football is built on storylines, memories, and drama and all three of those factors are created by the die-hard fans spread all over the country. In most cases, those fans have a good bit of delusion instilled in them and it's that delusion that makes the college game so great.
By now you've likely listened to the back-and-forth between Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney and 'Tyler from Spartanburg' who questioned Swinney's worth and ability to coach. While 'Tyler' may find himself in the crossfire for the time being, for every 'Tyler from Spartanburg' there's a 'John from Knoxville,' 'Kyle from Norman,' 'Richard from Tallahassee,' and so on.
While those fans turn out to be in the wrong 99 times out of 100, they're also the ones that keep college football so damn entertaining.
In order to get the full scope of things we need to look at college football in the most simple of ways.
College football is played by 18-22ish-year-olds. Yes, many are paid handsomely these days, but that doesn't discount the fact that most rosters are made up of kids who can't legally buy alcohol. The fanbases of these schools are mostly made up of adults with families, jobs, and responsibilities, yet they can't help from getting worked up when these kids don't meet their expectations.

The back-and-forth between Dabo Swinney and 'Tyler from Spartanburg' is what makes college football so magical. (Getty Images)
Players can't be fired, but coaches sure can, which is why Tyler calling into Swinney's radio show to question his abilities as a leader is the perfect example of the delusional college football fan.
Dabo Swinney has coached Clemson to four national title game appearances and has won two of them over the last seven seasons. Every program not named Alabama or Georgia would do deplorable things for that sort of success.
From the year 1900-2007, Clemson had seven 10-win seasons to its name. Swinney arrived in 2008 and has coached the Tigers to 12 10-win seasons.
'Tyler From Spartanburg' Is Invaluable To College Football
Clemson was irrelevant before Swinney took over the program.
Call the man corny all you want, but what he's done for the entire university by consistently winning football games and building a very real culture is legitimately priceless.

Dabo Swinney has been a winning machine since taking over at Clemson. (Photo by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images)
None of that matters for the 'Tylers from Spartanburg' though, all that matters is the here and now, and right now Swinney's Clemson is a below-average football team.
The reality, as crazy as it may seem, is that if the delusional fan didn't exist then college football would lose a considerable amount of its charm.
This beautifully stupid game needs the delusional fan to call into a radio show and tell one of the best coaches in the sport that he sucks.
Follow Mark Harris on X @ItIsMarkHarris and email him at mark.harris@outkick.com