Clemson's Dabo Swinney denies slur accusation

Clemson football coach Dabo Swinney refuted an allegation that one of his players used a racial slur Saturday night in a game against bitter in-state rival South Carolina.

Swinney labeled the accusation by South Carolina linebacker Bryson Allen-Williams as "absolutely false."

Allen-Williams told The State newspaper that an offensive lineman for the Tigers used "the n-word," setting off a pregame skirmish. The Gamecocks linebacker was unclear which player allegedly uttered the slur.

"I don't know which number. We are going to get our get-back," Allen-Williams said. "We definitely have this game circled next year."

Swinney told the Greenville News on Sunday that he polled his players and is steadfast in his belief that the charge is untrue.

"I was made aware of that," Swinney said. "Obviously, everybody is talking about that. That's a shame. Absolutely I asked my guys about that. To a man, absolutely false. And I believe my guys. I know the character of my team. That's all there is to say about it."

South Carolina defensive end Dante Sawyer backed his teammate via social media, posting on Twitter: "Racism still alive in Clemson i see.. classless sobs, still calling people (racial slur) is crazy."

Sawyer later tweeted that Tigers offensive lineman Jay Guillermo reached out to him about the incident and "received all my respect."

Fourth-ranked Clemson crushed South Carolina 56-7 to earn the right to play Virginia Tech in the ACC championship game on Saturday in Orlando, Fla.