CLEMSON — As Clemson continues its search for a new offensive coordinator, one name that popped up late Monday night as a strong candidate is current Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken.

Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney is looking for a new coordinator after he fired Garrett Riley on Monday. The Clemson Insider reported on Monday night, that Monken emerged as a strong candidate to replace Riley.

Why?

Monken is one of the top offensive minds in the game, and he has had success calling plays at the NFL and College level. Over his first two years in Baltimore, Monken took the Ravens’ offense to an elite level, with the unit ranking first in red zone TD pct. (67.9), rushing yards per game (172.1) and passer rating (110.8) and second in points per game (28.4), yards per play (6.3) and total yards per game (397.6) during this span.

In 2025, the Ravens are again one of the top offensive teams in the NFL. Of course, it helps when you have Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry to design plays around, but you still have to be creative. Remember, Monken coached Stetson Bennett at Georgia and helped the Bulldogs win two national championships.

Why does Monken make sense at Clemson?

In his 37 years as a coach, Monken spent 26 seasons coaching in college football, including a stint at Southern Miss., as its head coach. He loves the college game and is looking to get back.

Monken also makes sense due to his ties to the Clemson staff. Monken was the OC at Georgia when current Clemson offensive line coach Matt Luke was in charge of the Bulldogs’ big boys up front.

Monken led the Bulldogs’ offense to a No. 5 national ranking in points per game (39.8) and No. 8 in scrimmage yards per game (472.0) over the span of Georgia’s most recent national title seasons (2021-22).. The Bulldogs posted 198.1 rushing yards per contest during this stretch, while adding 273.8 passing yards per game.

He also makes sense because of how he can adjust to his personnel and still be effective at running the football.

Best example of Monken adjusting to his personnel is Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson, who became the first player in NFL single-season history with at least 4,000 passing yards (4,172), 40 TDs (41) and fewer than 5 INTs (4). Jackson also became the first player in NFL single-season history to throw for at least 4,000 yards and rush for 800 (915).

But Monken’s success does not stop there. He revitalized running back Derrick Henry’s career. In his first year in Baltimore, Henry set franchise records in total (18) and rushing TDs (16).

With someone of Monken’s ilk, the sky is the limit at what he can do with the Tigers’ offense. Reserve quarterback Chris Denson will be a perfect fit for what Monken wants the quarterback to do in his offense. Clemson also has the talent at tight end and wide receiver to really exploit how defense will try to attack his offense.

The Ravens led the NFL in total offense (424.9 ypg), rushing offense (187.6 ypg), red zone TD efficiency (74.2 percent) and yards per play (6.8). Baltimore’s league-best 6.85 yards per play in 2024 stands as the third-highest single-season average in NFL history, trailing only the 2000 Rams (6.98) and 1954 Rams (6.89).

If you are Swinney, you have to make Monken say “No” before you remove him as a candidate for the job.