Streeter Found a Way to Get It Done

Clemson’s New Offensive Coordinator Enjoyed Calling Plays, Again

Brandon Streeter continued something in the Cheez-It Bowl that seems to be a theme in the Clemson Football Program these days.

Play at Clemson, coach at Clemson, become a coordinator at Clemson and win a bowl game for Clemson.

Like his predecessors, Jeff Scott and Tony Elliott, Streeter played at Clemson before coming back and being the Tigers’ quarterbacks coach the last seven seasons and as its passing-game coordinator the last two seasons. When Elliott left Clemson last month to become the new head coach at Virginia, Streeter slid into the offensive coordinator’s position, where in his first game calling plays the Tigers beat Iowa State, 20-13, in the Cheez-It Bowl.

“It was fun. It was a lot of fun,” Streeter said after the game. “The game plan part of it. It really starts with the commitment that our staff had throughout these last couple of weeks. I am just so proud of those guys for helping formulate the game plan and just trying to find a way to win. Any way we can get this W, to get that tenth win is very, very important. But it was really fun.”

It was coincidental that Streeter’s first win as Clemson’s offensive coordinator came in the same building when he became a full-time coach at Clemson. That was in 2014, when Clemson smashed Oklahoma, 40-6, in the Russell Athletic Bowl.

That was also the first game in which Elliott and Scott took over as co-offensive coordinators.

“Cole Stoudt was the MVP. That was my first game here, and then this was my first game as the offensive coordinator and both, obviously, we got a win, and I am just really excited about that and feel really, really blessed,” Streeter said. “Just being able to have that opportunity to coach these young men and be in charge and have that responsibility, at an awesome place, with some awesome people, makes it really, really rewarding.”

As he said, Stoudt went on to win the MVP of the 2014 Russell Athletic Bowl, as he threw for a career-high 319 yards and three touchdowns against no interceptions on 26-of-36 passing and added a rushing touchdown in the win over the Sooners.

Though the 19th-ranked Tigers (10-3) did not have an offensive explosion in the Cheez-It Bowl like they did in the 2014 Oklahoma win, Streeter was creative in the way in which he used the playmakers he had available.

With seven scholarship wide receivers out due to injury or transferring, Streeter found different ways to get the ball in the hands of running backs Will Shipley and Kobe Pace. The two future stars combined to touch the ball 39 times for 203 yards and a touchdown.

Shipley carried the ball 18 times for 61 yards and scored on a 12-yard touchdown run, while also catching five passes for 53 more yards. Pace had 51 rushing yards on 12 carries, and also added four receptions for 38 yards.

“(Calling plays) was something that I have done for several years in the past,” Streeter said. “It made me feel really good being back up there and calling those plays and watching these kids that you are watching every day in practice and watching them do some things that were fun to watch, so I am just excited about the opportunity.”

And as the final seconds went off the clock at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Streeter said he let out a big sigh of relief.

“We found a way to get it done. That was the key this year, finding a way to get it done,” he said.