Dabo Swinney Family: Wife Kathleen Bassett – Meet His Kids & Parents

Dabo Swinney’s family consists of his wife Kathleen and his three sons.

His family also consists of his brother Henry ‘Tripp’ Swinney III, aside from his immediate family of five. According to multiple reports, his sibling was put behind bars for stalking in 2016. Tripp’s wife claims she continued to receive messages from him despite taking action against him for domestic violence.

Aside from being a notable personality in the sports world, he also stresses the importance of being close to home.

The Clemson Tigers head coach credits his family for an integral part of the process of instilling this work ethic in the team, and

Swinney can be considered a lucky man as, despite his hectic work schedule, he can spend an optimum amount of time with his family. In simple terms, he coaches two of his sons on his team.

Kathleen Bassett, the wife of Dabo Swinney, is a former teacher and now a philanthropist.

Bassett serves as Vice Chair of the All In Team Foundation and is actively involved as a Community Leader in Clemson, S.C.

Aside from her philanthropic works, Kathleen likes to bake, to the degree where she reads cookbooks on airplanes. She loves baking as she feels that it is a great stress reliever.

In middle school, she was a cheerleader. Remembering her routine from her younger days, Kathleen would go cheer him in high school at Dabo’s every football and basketball game.

How Did Dabo And Kathleen Swinney Met Each Other?

Dabo and his partner Kathleen Swinney initially met in elementary school and had known one another since they were young.

The two were students at the same middle school and high school. However, they attended separate elementary schools in Birmingham, Alabama, and were in different grades. When they met each other for the first time, Dabo was in second grade and Kathleen was in class one.

The two were close as both were part of the elementary school safety patrol and the middle school student council. They even went to the student council dances together.

However, despite being inseparable, they did not begin dating until they were both enrolled at Pelham High School. After high school, unsurprisingly, they attended the University of Alabama and walked the stage to receive their degree in 1993.

After receiving a degree in Education, Kathleen followed the path to becoming a school teacher.

While Dabo initially started his steps into the professional world as a Graduate Assistant under Coach [Gene] Stallings, she was teaching at a nearby middle school in Tuscaloosa.

Dabo proposed to his better half Kathleen on August 19, 1993, at Denny Chimes, which is on the quad at Alabama. While they were walking on the quad one night, he got down on one knee and proposed. They have been lawfully wedded for almost two decades now.

Dabo Swinney is the father of three children, Will Swinney, Drew Swinney, and Clay Swinney. He and his wife, Kathleen, raised their kids in Clemson, which they feel has been a blessing.

What’s amazing is that two of Swinney’s three boys followed their dad’s footpaths to the athletic sector and are on the Clemson football team playing for the Clemson Tigers.

Coaching sons is something that few coaches have the opportunity to be a part of, and Dabo Swinney is among those who got the privilege to coach his kids. It is something that he does not take for granted.

Dabo Swinney’s First Child – Will Swinney

Will Swinney, Dabo Swinney’s first child, became the first son of a Clemson football head coach to play for the Tigers after Jimmy Howard.

The 24-year-old athlete was born on August 19, 1998, and he played alongside his brother Drew for three years, from 2018 to 2021. The merging collegiate player earned a degree in marketing in May 2021. And he was even enlisted in the five-time ACC Honor Roll selection from 2017 to 2021.

Dabo Swinney’s Second Child – Drew Swinney

Born on January 23, 2000, to Dabo and Kathleen, Drew Swinney earned a four-time ACC Honor Roll selection (2018-21).

With a degree in Marketing, he did a micro internship in Myrtle Beach in the spring of 2022 with Elliott Realty. The amazing part about him is he was awarded as the team’s highest GPA award winner and won the Coach’s Award in the past.

Dabo Swinney’s Third Child – Clay Swinney

Clay is the youngest son of Dabo and Kathleen and plays as a wide receiver on the 2022 Clemson football team.

Dabo Swinney was born to his parents, Ervil Swinney and Carol McIntosh, on November 20, 1969, in Alabama.

The athlete turned coach grew up in an alcoholic home as his dad had a bad drinking habit. Though his dad struggled with alcohol, he was a precious man to Swinney.

But, his father also became an inspiration for them to create All-In Foundation as he wanted to help and serve at Horse Academy, The Family Effect, and Serenity Place.

Regarding Swinney’s parents-in-law, his mother-in-law was a school teacher and raised four kids, including his wife Kathleen. On the contrary, his father-in-law was involved as a Geography Professor.

Later, Kathleen’s father quit his job as a teacher and began his own business. He still runs his printing company even after forty years.

While Dabo Swinney is known by his nickname ‘Dabo Swinney’, his real name is William Christopher Swinney.

He was unaware of his real name until he was in grade three. He only came to know his real name was William because of Scantron standardized testing in grade three.

His brother Tripp mispronounced when they were both small children, causing his real name to be overshadowed by the mispronounced name.

Dabo Swinney got his nickname thanks to his elder brother. When Swinney was a baby, his older brother Tripp (who was not even two years old) attempted to refer to his little bro as “that boy.”

But, the pronunciation sounded more like “Dabo” rather than what the boy originally wanted to call. Thus, the naive Swinney thought it was his actual name due to such mispronunciation.

Swinney’s father, who usually called him by his middle name Chris, even pretty soon called him Dabo as the word Dabo was stuck in their family’s tongue. So, Tripp wasn’t the only one calling him Dabo.

It is found that Dabo Swinney made a trademark of his name in 2013, and thus his nickname is attached to him legally now. The trademark also allows him to work with the Clemson marketing program to sell items with Dabo’s name.

No, Dabo Swinney’s first name Dabo is just a mispronounced version of “that boy.” And, there is an interesting yet funny story behind his nickname.

When Swinney was a baby, his older brother Tripp started referring to him as “that boy.”

But, there arose a small issue and that is an incorrect way of saying ‘that boy’, which ended up being a word that sounded more like “Dabo.” Be that a mistake or issue, the Clemson coach has attached himself closely now to his nickname.

Dabo Swinney has been at Clemson since 2003, i.e., for more than one and a half decades. He is originally from Birmingham, a city in the north-central region of the U.S. state of Alabama.

He started his coaching experience as a wide receiver at Clemson in 2003 and served in the same role till 2006. Later, he got promoted to assistant head coach or wide receivers in 2007 and worked till October 13, 2008.

Afterward, Swinney worked his way towards interim head coach or offensive coordinator at Clemson for almost two months and ended the role on December 1, 2008.

It was in 2009 that Dabo Swinney became head coach at Clemson after taking over for Tommy Bowden.

And the recent news about him is Clemson Tigers head football coach Dabo Swinney agreed to a new 10-year, $115 million contract. This contract deal is the largest college football coaching contract by total compensation.

Starting the Clemson journey as interim coach in 2008, he entered his 15th season as Clemson head coach. And during his leadership and tenure, Swinney has won two national championships and seven ACC titles.