CLEMSON — Tom Allen isn’t mincing words when it comes to some of the immediate needs on the Clemson defense.

Allen, who is about to wrap up his first season as the Tigers’ defensive coordinator, was hired away from Penn State with the intent of improving a Clemson defense that very much failed to live up to expectations a season ago. While the Tigers certainly improved in some areas, there were other aspects of the defense that didn’t come close to meeting preseason expectations.

While Clemson is currently prepping for its Pinstripe Bowl matchup against the Nittany Lions on December 27, Allen has already been working on identifying needs for next year’s team. Some of those needs are immediate, and Allen insists they will be addressed in the transfer portal.

“To me, it’s about how do you improve your roster,” Allen said during the Pinstripe Bowl Virtual Press Conference on Wednesday. “We’ve had a lot of discussions about that. You either improve your roster by recruiting guys out of high school, or you do it by utilizing the transfer portal. I do see us doing that, obviously. At certain positions more than others. I do see us being able to maximize that. We want to improve our roster to put us in a position to play the way I want us to play, both structurally and attitude-wise, and mindset-wise.”

One specific area where Clemson has experienced its share of struggles is on the backend of the defense. The Tigers allowed 250.5 passing yards per game in the regular season, which puts Clemson firmly outside of the Top 100 in the nation when it comes to pass defense.

The safety position was routinely a weak link, although the group did play better down the stretch. With Khalil Barnes leaving the team and planning to enter the portal next month, and Avieon Terrell forgoing his senior season to enter the NFL Draft, Allen made no secret about the Tigers’ plans when it comes to adding secondary help.

“Being able to obviously address that through the portal,” Allen said. “I just think that is an obvious thing we are going to need to do at multiple positions. Obviously, Coach (Swinney) leads the way on that, but I see the need for that, for sure. To be able to go out and get guys that have played this game at this level. It’s still about getting the right fit. For the locker room, the culture, and the way you want to play your style of defense. Definitely see that being a big need for us, and excited for that process to begin here once we get the bowl game finalized.”

Photo by Bart Boatwright