CLEMSON, S.C. (AP) — Practice plans. Film breakdowns. Travel bookings. Clemson coach Dabo Swinney had his focus split several ways getting ready to face No. 4 Texas in the College Football Playoff.
Still, Swinney had enough time to follow how Super Bowl-winning coach Bill Belichick joined the Atlantic Coast Conference as North Carolina's new leader.
“It's incredible,” Swinney said Monday, his face breaking into a huge grin.
Swinney, like Belichick, knows about winning championships with nine ACC titles and two national titles in 16 full seasons with the Tigers.
He's got nothing but admiration for Belichick, who has 302 wins in the NFL and six Super Bowl victories as a head coach, all the championships with the New England Patriots.
Most figured that the 72-year-old Belichick, whose tenure with New England ended after last season, would wait for his next NFL chance to return to coaching. Yet he accepted the job with the Tar Heels last week and has already begun putting together a program Belichick expects to rival Clemson in terms of time at the top of the ACC.
“I mean, it's pretty cool,” Swinney said. “It's going to be something seeing him walk into ACC meetings or things like that.”
Swinney has had his hands full this week prepping for the fifth-seeded Longhorns (11-2) on Friday. The 13th-ranked Tigers (10-3) earned the 12th and final CFP seed with a 34-31 win over SMU on Dec. 7 on a dramatic, 56-yard field goal by freshman Nolan Hauser as time expired.
The Tigers will head to Texas on Thursday.
Swinney took some time, though, to recall his only meeting with Belichick, which came at one of Clemson's pro days during the Tigers' run of six straight CFP appearances from 2015-20. Both were complimentary of the other during their visit.
Swinney was present at a pair of Patriot Super Bowls, both coming as Belichick had Clemson tight end Dwayne Allen on his roster. The first came in Atlanta in February 2017 when New England rallied from a 28-3 deficit to beat the Falcons in overtime, 34-28.
The next year, Swinney was in attendance in Minneapolis as Allen and the Patriots fell to Philadelphia 41-33.
Wes Goodwin, Clemson’s defensive coordinator, has studied Belichick’s defensive schemes for years and believes Belichick will elevate the Tar Heels’ defense and that improvement will spread through the ACC.
“I think its going to be huge for this league,” Goodwin said, “in getting that type of coaching and leadership.”
Swinney has had success against the best of the best in the past. Both Clemson national titles in 2016 and 2018 came over Alabama and national championship icon Nick Saban. Swinney won all three matchups in six seasons against Belichick's Tar Heels predecessor in Mack Brown, who won a national crown at Texas.
Swinney thinks Belichick will make a quick, positive impact on North Carolina. The Tigers go to North Carolina next season, although the date hasn't yet been set.
“I mean, it's great for college football,” Swinney said. “There are a lot of great coaches in this league. And again, for him to want to come into that, I think, says a lot.”
Will Belichick rival Swinney's news conferences, known for being quite lengthy as he willingly answers just about every question asked?
“Don't know if he's going to give you any depth chart answer,” Swinney said with a chuckle.
But count on, a “We're on to Pittsburgh,” response, he said.
Belichick will up the league's profile for as long as he's on the North Carolina sidelines, Swinney continued.
“There is nothing in his past, zero, that says he won't be successful (in college)," Swinney said.
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
New North Carolina head football coach Bill Belichick, center, holds up a UNC branded sleeveless hoodie between North Carolina Chancellor Lee Roberts, left, and athletic director Bubba Cunningham, right, during an NCAA college football press conference in Chapel Hill, N.C., Thursday, Dec. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Ben McKeown)
New North Carolina head football coach Bill Belichick speaks to the crowd at Dean Smith Center during halftime of an NCAA college basketball game between La Salle and North Carolina in Chapel Hill, N.C., Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Ben McKeown)
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A student opened fire at a private Christian school Monday morning in Wisconsin, killing two people in the final week before Christmas break. The shooter also died, police said.
Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes offered no details about the victims but said other people were wounded at Abundant Life Christian School, a K-12 school with about 390 students.
Barnes said the suspected shooter was a student who likely died by suicide.
Here is the Latest:
Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes identified the weapon police found as a handgun.
He said the gunfire was confined to one space. He didn’t specify whether it was a classroom.
Someone from the school called 911 to report an active shooter, Barnes said.
He said the police training center is three miles from the school, and staff responded from there.
“What began as a training day became an actual day,” he said.
Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes said he didn’t immediately know the shooter’s motive but added that detectives were “working hard to find as many answers as we can.”
Barnes said he was not releasing any information about the shooter, including name or gender.
Barnes declined to say anything about the shooter, partly out of respect for the student’s family.
“That’s still someone’s child that is gone,” he said.
A teacher and a teen student were killed in the shooting at a Wisconsin school by a fellow student, police chief says.
In addition to the deceased, Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes said six other students are being treated at area hospitals, including two in critical condition with life-threatening injuries and four with non-life threatening injuries.
Lisa Adams, a spokesperson for SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital in Madison, said the hospital has received patients from the shooting but declined to provide further details.
“We are praying for all affected by today’s tragic incident at Abundant Life Christian School and our community as a whole. We are grateful for the first responders who acted swiftly today,” she said. “SSM Health is dedicated to serving our community. We remain committed to providing support and assistance in any way we can.”
Emily Greendonner, a spokesperson for UW Health, said it is also receiving patients from the shooting and setting up areas for patients’ families. UW Health is affiliated with the University of Wisconsin.
The Abundant Life Christian School asked for the community’s prayers on its Facebook account Monday after a school shooting left at least three people dead, including the shooter.
“Prayers Requested! Today, we had an active shooter incident at ALCS. We are in the midst of following up. We will share information as we are able.
Please pray for our Challenger Family,” school staff posted on the Abundant Life Christian School Facebook page.
Hundreds of commenters offered prayers from around the country, some from former students, former teachers and alumni.
The school of about 390 students noted on its page in previous posts that this was the last school week before holiday break. Commenters also issued well wishes and prayers on videos of students on school trips and singing at the annual Christmas choir concert from recent weeks.
Bethany Highman rushed to the school that her daughter attends as soon as her mom, who lives near the school, called her about the shooting. Highman said she was able to briefly FaceTime with her daughter, so she knows she is safe.
Highman said she doesn't really know any details about what happened.
“We’re just as hungry for what’s going on as I’m sure all of you are,” she said.
Highman said it is surreal because you never expect to go through this even though it does happen.
“I bring my daughter to school knowing well that this happens in the world. That people are struggling. And I pray for my daughter’s safety and I pray for the entire school’s safety. I pray for the hearts of the students, the teachers, the staff members. It’s a very real thing.”
Highman’s world stopped when she got the call about the shooting.
“As soon as it happened, your world stops for a minute. Nothing else matters. There’s nobody around you. You just bolt for the door and try to do everything you can as a parent to be with your kids.”
Highman said she is angry about the shooting and devastated for the families who lost loved ones.
Monday's was the the latest among dozens of school shootings across the U.S. in recent years, including especially deadly ones in Newtown, Connecticut, Parkland, Florida, and Uvalde, Texas.
The shootings have set off fervent debates about gun control and frayed the nerves of parents whose children are growing up accustomed to doing active shooter drills in their classrooms.
But school shootings have done little to move the needle on national gun laws. Firearms were the leading cause of death among children in 2020 and 2021, according to KFF, a nonprofit that researches health care issues.
Investigators believe the shooter used a 9mm pistol, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation.
— By Alanna Durkin Richer
Police have updated the death toll for the shooting.
Police often caution when disclosing the number of victims after a shooting that the information is preliminary and could change. That is not uncommon, especially as investigators gather additional information and details about injuries.
“We are praying for the kids, educators, and entire Abundant Life school community as we await more information and are grateful for the first responders who are working quickly to respond,” Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers said in a statement.
Agents from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives have responded to the scene to assist local law enforcement.
Abundant Life Christian School is nondenominational and has about 390 students, from kindergarten through high school, according to its website.
Emergency vehicles are parked outside the Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wis., where multiple injuries were reported following a shooting, Monday, Dec. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)
