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In the 2019 offseason, Dabo Swinney is a megastar who adds to his celebrity simply by attending professional basketball and baseball games.
In the 2009 offseason, he was a relative nobody who knew enough to know he didn't have it all figured out.
A dismantling of South Carolina in the regular-season finale had signaled better days were ahead, in addition to signaling that Swinney was the right man for the job. A bumbling offensive showing against Nebraska in the Gator Bowl suggested more of the same Tommy Bowden rollercoaster.
Swinney wanted to learn from a master, so he called up Bob Stoops. The Sooners had amassed a 102-19 record over the previous nine seasons. Stoops said no-thanks, so Swinney called up the head of another machine.
Mack Brown said sure, come on.
