The Clemson Tigers lost defensive coordinator Brent Venables to the coaching carousel. Who can they pick up to replace him?
Dabo Swinney’s task of getting Clemson back to the top of the college football mountain in 2022 just got a lot harder.
Tigers defensive coordinator Brent Venables is leaving to take over the head coaching job at Oklahoma, which means Swinney has to identify a replacement.
Whoever he picks will have massive shoes to fill considering the job Venables did at Clemson over the years.
Who stands out at potential top-tier replacements?
3 candidates to replace Brent Venables as Clemson DC
Mike Tressel
Mike Tressel, the nephew of Jim Tressel, has helped Cincinnati get to the College Football Playoff as the defensive coordinator under Luke Fickell.
He spent five years as a defensive coordinator at Michigan State and has extensive experience coaching linebackers. He produced eight All-Americans with the Spartans.
Derek Mason
Swinney could take a swing for the fences and look to get Derek Mason away from Auburn.
Mason served as the head coach at Vanderbilt for seven seasons before being fired after the 2020 season. Before that, he was a respected defensive coordinator under David Shaw at Stanford.
Auburn’s defense got better under Mason and they’d be loathed to let him go. That’s what would make this such a desirable hire if Clemson could pull it off.
Todd Bates
To keep continuity, an obvious choice for Clemson would be to promote from within.
Todd Bates has been with Clemson since 2017 as a defensive line coach. He is a strong recruiter and has coached the Tigers’ line to great success in the trenches.
He has never been a defensive coordinator but he’s an up-and-coming figure with a decade of full-time assistant experience.
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