The Clemson football program suffered a brutal 28-7 blowout loss to Duke in their first game of the season, but Clemson coach Dabo Swinney still has optimism for his team overall despite the loss, saying that they should not be judged by the score of the game.

“People are going to see the score and judge this team,” Dabo Swinney said, via David Hale of ESPN. “I love this football team and I see a lot of opportunity here. … A lot of people are probably going to give up on us and throw us away. But I ain't throwing this team away. We're going to bounce back.”

Clemson football had a chance to gain the lead in the second half down six, but Phil Mufah fumbled the ball in the red zone, which set up a Duke touchdown and two-point conversion to extend the lead to 21-7.

Swinney maintains that he has a good team, despite the performance in the game.

“The good news is, if there is any good news, you didn't see a horrible football team out there,” Swinney said. “You saw a bad result. But you didn't see a bad football team that can't play the game.”

Cade Klubnik threw for 209 yards, but the Clemson offense turned it over three times in the game. The play that ended any slim hope of a comeback was when Cade Klubnik scrambled on fourth down and slid short of the marker midway through the fourth quarter. Targeting was called after the play, so the penalty was enforced after the turnover on downs.

Clemson will face Charleston Southern at home in its second game of the season.