During his weekly radio show Monday night, Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney spoke highly of the job that Tom Allen has done in his first year as the Tigers’ defensive coordinator this season.

“We’re better in [almost] every category statistically than we were last year at this time,” Swinney said.

Swinney says Clemson’s defense isn’t where the Tigers want it to be, but “they’ve gotten better, for sure.”

“It’s about points, and they’ve gotten better, for sure,” Swinney said. “We haven’t had as many busts, and again, we’ve done a better job in all areas from where we were last year to now. So, we just gotta continue to build on it.”

“Tom’s done a good job, and it’s just gonna get better,” Swinney added.

When it comes to points allowed, the Tigers are currently tied for 34th nationally in that category, allowing 21.0 points per game.

During their three-game winning streak, the Tigers have allowed only 10 points to Florida State, 19 points to Louisville, and 10 points to Furman.

“We’re not where we want to be, but we’ve improved. We got ourselves in a hole, but these guys have done a heck of a job getting better,” Swinney said. “We’re communicating better. Three games in a row, holding them to 20 points or less, and that’s a huge number for us. When we hold the opponent to 23 points or less, I think all the way back to 2010, we’re like 126-3. So, that’s a pretty good stat right there.”

Swinney says Allen’s changes to certain things, such as meeting structure, have helped the Tigers communicate better defensively.

“I think the communication – there obviously was a change in system and terminology and all those things, and I think again, Tom changed some things as far as how we’re meeting and stuff like that, that I think has helped a lot, getting the guys to communicate a little bit better,” Swinney said. “So, it’s been good. These last three games, they definitely have stepped up and made some improvements. But much more to go.”