When it comes to responding to critics, Krzyzewski and Swinney have much in common

Dominant college programs are similar regardless of sport. Not just in achievement and acclaim, but in regularly facing grand expectations and intense scrutiny, as Dabo Swinney and Mike Krzyzewski recently discovered anew.

Coaches learn that attempts to control the public narrative have limited effectiveness. That’s especially true in an era of e-commentary, too often ungrounded in facts, with offhand comments or small incidents, or even outright falsehoods, instantly magnified to ridiculous proportions.

Take what happened last March when Loyola-Chicago improbably advanced to the Final Four. The Cinderella story was accompanied with delight at the charming presence of Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt, the team’s 98-year-old chaplain. Then, when Sister Jean left the bench in the last moments of a loss to Michigan, instant criticism followed. Ramblers’ staff was left to explain the obvious -- it took time for the wheelchair-bound nun to navigate to a tunnel to greet the players as they left the court, as was her custom.

That sort of instantaneous judgment might undermine team unity or erode confidence. But long ago it became standard coaching procedure to manage outside pressures and opinions by offering a preferred narrative. Before a coach even makes post-game comments to the media, players in the locker room already are parroting what he or she is about to say.

Hall of Fame basketball coach Phog Allen of Kansas ran one of the earliest powerhouse programs. He cautioned protégé Dean Smith, “You can’t stop at every dog that barks or you’ll never get the mail delivered.” In keeping with that dictum, and recognizing their utterances can make news, high-profile coaches pick how and when to respond to critics.

Krzyzewski, a proponent of oncourt confrontation among players to foster communication, always has been direct. Once far quicker to show exasperation, he now defaults to reasoned rebuttal even as he vents. Listening closely is instructive, given his insights and his ability to share them in depth.

Over his 39 years at Duke he’s tried to stay ahead of the second-guessers, or pounced when it served his purposes. He’s cautioned against taking anything for granted. He’s told listeners every squad is different, and that, like individuals, each team “runs its own race,” evolving across a season. He’s objected to rooters expecting too much. He’s dismissed questions about replacing a departed performer, saying the absence will be filled collectively. He’s insisted all players -- especially the unseasoned youngsters he’s lately surrounded himself with -- have weaknesses best tamed by inculcating habits over time. (Time they may not have in a year under his tutelage.)

Chastisement is frequently delivered with an edge, as was likewise the case when Swinney, a fellow national figure, responded to gripes about undefeated Clemson’s 56-35 victory over archrival South Carolina to end the regular season.

Clemson not only went through the 2018 ACC season without a defeat, running its four-year league record to 34-2, it reaffirmed its position as the conference’s preeminent football program. Yet some fans, mesmerized by the program’s dominance, apparently adopted standards for satisfactory achievement that were a bit, shall we say, unreasonable.

“For all those people out there that want to complain about five wins in a row (over the bowl-bound Gamecocks), winning by three touchdowns, man, that’s shameful,” Swinney declared. “That’s a lack of respect for our program and a lack of respect for the effort that these players and coaches put in. I hope you write that.”

The tone was strikingly similar when, days later, Krzyzewski addressed criticism of the way freshman R.J. Barrett, his team down by two points, gathered himself at the top of the key, then drove the lane in the dying seconds against a set, veteran Gonzaga defense in the Maui Classic title game. Barrett’s close-in shot was blocked, he failed to look to dish to teammates, he didn’t draw a foul, and Duke lost.

To some eyes Barrett was brave, resolute. To others he was needlessly selfish on a star-studded squad bristling with alternative scoring options. To yet others, he was simply an 18-year-old trying to rise to a challenge in his sixth official college game.

“We’re not going to complain about that or say the refs lost the game, but come on. Come on. The kid had the guts to (drive to the basket) and probably should have gone to the foul line,” Krzyzewski said. “And Duke fans, just cut it out, man. These kids aren’t perfect.

“My kid wasn’t playing hero ball, he was playing winner’s ball. If you don’t like following him, then don’t follow us. I’ll go to war with my guys. He had the heart to do that…We lose, I’ll lose with them. Let’s get real about this whole thing. Let’s not get spoiled.”

You could almost hear Dabo Swinney agreeing in the background.