ESPN senior writer Andrea Adelson believes Clemson can get back to dominating on the defensive side of the ball, with new defensive coordinator Tom Allen now in the fold.
There are plenty of reasons why Adelson expects Allen to make a big difference for the Tiger defense. But the No. 1 thing, in her opinion, is the experience Allen brings as a 33-year coaching veteran.
In addition to his experience as the head coach at Indiana from 2017-23, Allen has a lot of experience as a defensive coordinator at the college level – something Wes Goodwin didn’t have when he took over as Clemson’s DC in December 2021, replacing Brent Venables after his departure to become Oklahoma’s head coach.
“When you look at the transition they made from Brent Venables to Wes Goodwin – he’d never been a coordinator before, he’d never called a game before,” Adelson said during a recent appearance on the CFB Nation podcast. “And in talking to several ACC coaches last year, just about like, ‘What are you seeing out of the Clemson defense?’ It was so strange to see Clemson’s defense be reactionary, not aggressive, not setting the tone, not getting push up front, being bad against the run, and not really getting the TFLs and sacks that we’re used to seeing Clemson getting. It was kind of like, ‘What is going on here with this defense? It’s just not a typical Clemson-type defense.’
“And a lot of the coaches that I talked to in the league just said there was a tentativeness about them, and that Goodwin wasn’t sure when to be aggressive, when to pull back, when to make the right calls, should we try and stop the run or worry about the pass? It just felt like this was a team that wasn’t quite sure of itself. And I think a lot of that stems from the fact that Wes Goodwin maybe, without that experience, trying to learn on the job. You can’t really do that at a place like Clemson.”
Allen joined the Tigers in January after most recently serving as the defensive coordinator/linebackers coach at Penn State in 2024, when the Nittany Lions finished seventh in the nation in total defense (294.8 yards per game) and eighth in the nation in scoring defense (16.5 points per game). Allen’s unit also finished second nationally in tackles for loss (119) and fifth in sacks (44).
Allen helped lead the Nittany Lions to a school-record 13 wins and a College Football Playoff berth this past season. Allen’s defense recorded two pick-sixes in Penn State’s 38-10 win against SMU in the CFP First Round. In the following game, his unit bottled up Heisman runner-up Ashton Jeanty, holding the star running back to a season-low 3.47 yards per carry and no touchdowns in a 31-14 Penn State victory in the CFP National Quarterfinal at the Fiesta Bowl.
Allen helped guide defensive end Abdul Carter to unanimous All-America honors, Penn State’s first time having a player earn that distinction since running back Saquon Barkley in 2017.
“From my vantage point, seeing the job that Tom Allen did this past season at Penn State, but also the experience that he has and knowing what he’s doing, the fact that Penn State defense kind of picked up where they left off with (former Penn State DC) Manny Diaz in terms of that aggressive mindset, aggressive nature, what they did last year with Abdul Carter and those guys up front – typically that’s what Clemson does themselves defensively,” Adelson said. “And so in my view, it’s a great fit because they can get back to the things that have made Clemson such a standout on defense.”
Allen is now tasked with improving a Clemson defense that, under Goodwin in 2024, ranked tied for 49th in the FBS in points per game allowed (23.4), tied for 53rd in passing yards per game allowed (213.5), tied for 64th in yards per play allowed (5.6) and 85th in rushing yards per game allowed (160.6).
Allen has no shortage of talent to work with as he takes over at the helm of the Tiger defense, and Adelson sees Allen getting the most out of Clemson’s personnel with his experience and ability to call plays, as well as put his players in position to make plays.
“You bring guys back like Peter Woods, T.J. Parker. They signed a defensive end from Purdue (Will Heldt) out of the transfer portal, knowing defensive end was a weak spot, they need to be able to improve and upgrade there. I think they’ve done that,” Adelson said. “And so, from my perspective, having somebody now who knows how to call a game, who knows how to get his guys in position to make those types of plays. The linebackers, I thought, radically underperformed a year ago. And Barrett Carter was good, but I think he could have probably been on another level last season.
“To me, you put all those pieces together with the guys coming back – the aggressiveness, the experience of a play-caller like Tom Allen, who also it seems as though has a same sort of mindset, culture, belief system as Dabo – and that, to me, is what I think can put Clemson now back to a place where they can dominate defensively the way that we’re used to seeing.”