CLEMSON — Last year, around this same time, Clemson defensive coordinator Tom Allen came out in a press conference and relayed that his hands were basically tied on what he could call because his roster was limited.
Sound familiar?
One year later, now that Allen has the guys he needs to put a better product on the football field, the Clemson defense is thriving.
Those things Allen said one year ago, are basically being said again by another Clemson coach. However, this time it is coming on the offensive side of the ball.
Offensive coordinator Chad Morris spoke with the media on Wednesday, and he relayed his concerns on why the offense is struggling and how careful he has to be with play calling because he is working with an inexperienced offensive line and a freshman quarterback that is learning on the run.
Right now, the Tigers rank near the bottom nationally in almost every statistical data point.
Clemson, who hosts Virginia Tech on Saturday in a crucial ACC game, rank 15th in the ACC in scoring offense (22.3 ppg), 16th in total offense (340.7 ypg) and last in passing offense (187.5 ypg). It is also 138 nationally in touchdown passes thrown, which is dead last.
This is not the offense Morris envisioned for the Tigers when he took the job last January.
“Where I wanted us to be and where we are now, it’s not it,” he said. “Well, a lot of that is we have to adjust and adapt to our personnel and what is going on and our quarterback and where he’s at. I can’t put too much on him. That’s the worst thing I can do is compound things with him.”
Of course, head coach Dabo Swinney caught a lot of heat after he decided not to go to the transfer portal and go after an experienced quarterback, while not casting a bigger net and bringing in a couple of more offensive linemen.
Morris and the Tigers hope to be better on Saturday night when the Tigers take on the Hokies at 7 p.m. on ESPN.