Former Clemson Player Coached by Tom Allen Is Excited About Potential New Hire

One of Tom Allen's former players is excited about the possibility of Clemson hiring him as the new defensive coordinator.
Penn State defensive coordinator Tom Allen arrives at Milan Puskar Stadium before an NCAA football game against West Virginia, Saturday, August 31, 2024, in Morgantown, W. Va.
Penn State defensive coordinator Tom Allen arrives at Milan Puskar Stadium before an NCAA football game against West Virginia, Saturday, August 31, 2024, in Morgantown, W. Va. / Dan Rainville / USA TODAY NETWORK
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Clemson made some headlines when it was revealed they are moving closer to hiring Tom Allen away from his role as defensive coordinator of Penn State to take the same job with the Tigers.

This comes on the heels of Dabo Swinney moving on from Wes Goodwin, the previous coach in that role who was there for three years and delivered underwhelming results compared to what the program got under Brent Venables.

The hope is Allen returns Clemson's defense to being one of the best in the game.

After he was fired as the head coach of Indiana in 2023, he was able to keep Penn State's defense as being one of the top in the country this past season following Manny Diaz taking the head job at Duke, something that was no easy feat to accomplish.

Allen shouldn't have a problem doing that with Clemson, and that has former Tigers player Elijah Rodgers fired up about the expected new defensive coordinator coming to Death Valley.

"Man, I'm excited. I'm excited more so for the fans. I'm extremely excited for the players man. I think the players are really going to buy into who Coach Allen is and his passion and everything he brings to the game of football on and off the field for the guys," he said per Grayson Mann of Tiger Net.

Rodgers would know.

He signed with Allen and Indiana as a three-star recruit in high school as part of their 2018 class out of Blacksburg, South Carolina, and while he transferred to Gardner Webb after one season before coming to Clemson for two years, that has given him perspective on what Allen will bring to the table.

"He just brings so much passion, man. He reminds me a lot of Coach Swinney. Honestly. He's a big man of faith. He's a defensive-minded guy so this is a home run hire for us if he do land him," Rodgers added.

That last part is the bit of news everyone at Clemson is waiting to receive.

While it seems like this is a done deal, nothing has been made official just yet, so if things fall apart then there's a chance the Tigers have to go back to the drawing board in their search for a new defensive coordinator.

Rodgers is certainly hoping that doesn't happen, and if Clemson is able to get this finalized, then they will be one step closer to getting back to national prominence.


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