CLEMSON — It seems that Dabo Swinney has found his man.

The Clemson Insider has information where all signs point to Penn State defensive coordinator Tom Allen to become the next defensive coordinator at Clemson. On Monday afternoon, the Clemson Board of Trustees’ Compensation Committee called a meeting for Tuesday to approve a “Football Coach’s Compensation.”

As TCI reported Monday morning, things were moving fast in the Tigers’ search to replace Wes Goodwin as defensive coordinator. We also confirmed Allen and Swinney share the same agent which helped in moving the process along faster than normal. Their agent is also the same agent that represents outgoing South Carolina Athletic Director Ray Tanner.

Allen spent the 2024 season as the defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at Penn State, leading a unit that helped guide the Nittany Lions to the semifinal round of the College Football Playoff.

The Nitty Lions’ defense ranked 8th nationally in scoring defense this season (16.5 ppg) and 7th in total defense (294.8 ypg). They also ranked 9th in rushing defense (101.9 ypg) and 7th in yards per carry (3.05).

Penn State also ranked fifth nationally with 44 sacks and second in tackles for loss with 119. The Nitty Lions also ranked fifth in red zone defense in 2024.

A former head coach at Indiana, Allen has 33 years of coaching experience on his resume. He came to Penn State in 2024 after Manny Diaz left the Nittany Lions to become the head coach at Duke.

Before this past season, Allen spent eight years at Indiana, with seven seasons (2017-23) as Indiana’s head coach and one as the Hoosiers’ defensive coordinator. According to Penn State’s official website, in his last 29 seasons, the teams for which Allen has been a member of the coaching staff have posted a combined record of 268-120 (.690).

In his eight-year tenure with the Hoosiers, IU’s defenses were known for getting off the field on third downs, ranking in the top five in the Big Ten on third down in five seasons and in the top 15 nationally twice.

The Hoosiers were 33-49 during his tenure as head coach and made it to three bowl games. He also led Indiana to a final ranking of No. 12 in the AP Poll during the shortened 2020 season.

Last Monday, Swinney officially announced that Goodwin would not return as the Tigers’ defensive coordinator in 2025. Goodwin has spent the past three seasons leading the Clemson defense, taking over after Brent Venables left for the head coaching job at Oklahoma.

While the Tigers finished ranked inside of the Top 10 nationally in several defensive categories during Goodwin’s first two seasons, the production fell off dramatically in 2024. Clemson ranked ninth in the ACC this past season and 69th nationally by allowing 374.1 yards per game in total yards allowed. The Tigers also allowed 23.4 points per game, good enough for sixth in the ACC and tied for 53rd nationally.

The biggest drop came from their run defense. Clemson’s run defense this year was the worst it has been since 1975, as the Tigers allowed 4.7 yards per carry. Clemson gave up 160.7 yards per game on the ground, its most since 2011.

Clemson ranked 86th nationally against the run and 99th in yards per carry allowed. The 160.7 yards ranked 16th in the 17-team ACC, while the 4.7 yards per carry ranked 15th in the conference.

Photo courtesy of Matthew O’Haren-Imagn Images

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