After the overly disappointing season last year, Dabo Swinney has been intent on not experiencing a similar result in 2026.

The longtime head coach made some tweaks to his coaching staff, including bringing Chad Morris back to run the offense. Swinney also hit the portal harder than ever before, retooling a defense that failed miserably to live up to gaudy expectations last season.

However, one of the biggest goals of the offseason has been to rid the program of some entitlement issues that apparently plagued the Tigers a season ago, and defensive coordinator Tom Allen believes Swinney has done a really good job leading the charge.

“Coach did a good job kind of setting that tone leading into the offseason,” Allen said. “The way things went last year, that was a goal of his and he was on point with that.”

According to Allen, no job has been safe this spring, and that will continue to be the case moving forward. Bringing in double-digit transfers has helped change the mindset, particularly on the defensive side of the ball, where Clemson added nine portal players.

“Bringing in some guys in the portal that are trying to prove themselves, they definitely feel like they got to come here and earn a spot,” Allen said. “Then you got a lot of younger guys trying to earn their way for the first time. Then you got the guys coming back who learned there was a lot of hiring and firing. Guys getting elevated on the depth chart. Promotions and demotions. That is kind of how it has been the whole spring.”

In some ways, there has been a cultural reset, and after having a pass defense that ranked No. 118 nationally last season, that has to be a good thing.

Allen wants everything to be earned. That means constant changes to the rotations. Just because you are running with the ones one day doesn’t mean you will be the next. And so far, Allen is seeing a lot of buy-in from the players on his defense.

“I just think there is that no entitlement piece. Nobody is promised anything. You got to earn everything here,” Allen said. “I think that has been a good renewal for everybody.”

“I think sometimes things can be taken for granted when things happen a certain way for a long time. And I think we saw a little bit of that. It is healthy to be able to purge yourself of that. I think our guys have bought into that. When you are 7-6, it is pretty easy to make them understand that is not even close to the standard that is supposed to be acceptable.”