Clemson Football Transfer Has Family Tie to Brownell
By: Gavin Oliver February 22, 2025

There’s plenty of Hoosier State flavor going on around Tiger Town right now.

Clemson’s new defensive coordinator, Tom Allen, was a longtime coach in the state of Indiana, both at the high school and college levels.

Meanwhile, the Tigers brought in transfer defensive end Will Heldt this offseason. The Carmel, Ind., native transferred to Clemson following two productive seasons at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind.

As it turns out, Heldt’s family goes way back with Clemson men’s basketball head coach Brad Brownell.

It’s a small world, and Heldt actually has a family tie to Brownell, a native of Evansville, Ind.

“So my dad grew up in the same town — Evansville, Indiana – as Brad Brownell,” Heldt said during the latest episode of Clemson Football’s official podcast, 2 Right Turns.

“And my uncle was best friends and played basketball and baseball with Brad Brownell growing up. So, yeah, a little bit of a family tie. Hometown to Clemson. Who would’ve thought?”

Heldt played in all 24 games for the Boilermakers across his two seasons at Purdue from 2023-24. As a sophomore this past season, the 6-foot-6, 265-pounder was credited with 56 tackles (10.0 for loss), 5.0 sacks and a fumble recovery he returned 16 yards for a touchdown.

Now, Heldt will be suiting up for Dabo Swinney and the Tigers after joining Swinney’s program with two years of eligibility left.

With the recent news that Florida State head basketball coach Leonard Hamilton is stepping down at the end of this season, Clemson will enter the 2025-26 academic/athletic year with the ACC’s longest-tenured head coach in both football and men’s basketball.