CLEMSON -- Three years ago at this time, Clemson fans were a bit confused when their head coach said "the best is yet to come."

They were months removed from a four-touchdown thrashing of Alabama that almost no one saw coming.

How could it possibly get better than that? How could two national championships in three seasons be topped? How could Dabo Swinney and his family surpass the feeling of doing confetti angels on the Levi's Stadium field hours after 44-16 was complete?

Undoubtedly, what has unfolded since that night has underscored the immense difficulty of staying on top. The next year they reached the national title game but looked wobbly in the semifinal against Ohio State and then were blown out of the Superdome by LSU. In 2020 they were humbled once again on the CFP stage when the Buckeyes took out years of vengeance in the semifinal. And then of course last year, when they looked nothing like a championship contender before finishing 10-3.

So yes, everyone in these parts has a lot more perspective. A lot more appreciation for the finer things in college football life.

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But the reason we've been thinking about Swinney's "best is yet to come" proclamation is because of the existential changes taking place right now in college football.

No one that we know of knows exactly what is going to happen, and when it is going to happen. It does feel like USC's and UCLA's move to the Big Ten will trigger more movement toward the superconference era, which plenty of people in college athletics have been predicting for a long time.

Many of you are anxious to know what's going to happen, and whether Clemson is going to end up OK. Our bet is yes, and that bet is based largely on the profile that has been achieved under Swinney over the playoff era.