Dabo Swinney describes what Tom Allen has brought to Clemson defense

Arguably college football’s biggest addition of the offseason wasn’t any individual player, but rather a 55-year-old former head coach on his third job in three years. In just four months, new Clemson defensive coordinator Tom Allen has already proven to be a revelation for the defending ACC champions.

Allen, who previously spent eight seasons (2016-23) as Indiana‘s head coach, formally joined the Tigers in mid-January after just one season in the same role at Penn State, where his defense was integral in helping the Nittany Lions advance to the College Football Playoff national semifinals last season.

Now, Allen has brought his infectious personality and high-energy approach to coaching to Clemson, where he’s trying to reestablish the Tigers as a Top 10 defense after falling to 69th nationally in 2024.

“Tom, if you know him, you know he’s a high-energy guy. So that’s been a lot of fun,” longtime Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney said during an appearance on ACC Network during the league Spring meetings in Amelia Island, Fla. earlier this month. “He doesn’t have much of a voice because he’s abused his voice much of his life, so he’s got a microphone that he carries around and we kind of go back and forth (at practice).

Dabo Swinney: New DC Tom Allen has ‘gelled it together’ since arriving at Clemson

“The biggest thing is, he’s obviously a great football coach, but he’s a great leader of people. And he’s really brought a ton of leadership to that side of the ball. Listen, those are tough decisions you make from time to time,” Swinney continued. “I mean, I can’t say enough good things about (former DC) Wes Goodwin. … But, in end, it just didn’t quite come together the way we wanted. And Tom has come in and really gelled it together from a staff standpoint, and certainly from a leadership side of those young people. And also recruiting, recruiting is a big part of this world too, and he’s highly respected and just really thankful that he came.”

While the seemingly lateral move might have caught some around college football off-guard, Allen himself has made it clear coming to Clemson was all about his family. Allen’s son, Thomas, also joined the Tigers staff as a defensive analyst and assistant linebackers coach.

“He came sight unseen. The first time he really saw Clemson was when I picked him up,” Swinney concluded. “So it was really cool to welcome he and his family, his son Thomas is with us as well. So he’s done an awesome job. But as I said earlier, we play LSU and have a tough road ahead, but it should be fun.”