Clemson has hired TCU offensive coordinator Garrett Riley to the same position, the school announced Friday. Riley, 33, was named the Broyles Award winner as college football’s top assistant coach after helping lead the Horned Frogs to their first appearance in a national championship game. Riley’s contract is a three-year deal worth $1.75 million per yearwhich was approved by the board on Friday.
“I am very pleased to welcome Garrett and Lindsay Riley and their two precious sons to the Clemson family,” said head coach Dabo Swinney. “Garrett has an incredible track record. His work – including last season when his ninth-ranked offense helped TCU go from a five-win team to a 13-win finalist in his coaching staff’s first season. – – speaks for itself…I know that all of Clemson will help welcome the Riley family into the Clemson family with open arms.
Riley helped oversee a transformation at TCU as the Frogs went from 5-7 to 13-2 under freshman coach Sonny Dykes. The Horned Frogs went from No. 65 to No. 9 on offense thanks to Riley’s efforts as quarterback Max Duggan earned a trip to New York as a Heisman runner-up.
Like his older brother, USC coach Lincoln Riley, Garrett has a long history of using the Air Raid attack…but with some wrinkles. Riley worked under his brother for two years as a graduate assistant before joining fellow Texan David Beaty in Kansas. He later spent a year learning the Appalachian State system under current Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz and was to take over play calling duties under Shawn Clark before Dykes poached him to lead. the offense at SMU with great success.
“I am honored and thrilled to join the Clemson family,” Riley said. “The opportunity to join a program with such a rich tradition and renowned culture was just too good to pass up. I have always had enormous respect for Coach Swinney and the program he has built. J appreciate the faith that he, Graham Neff, the Clemson administration and the entire Clemson community have placed in me.”
Hiring Riley is a departure for Swinney, who has historically relied on internal candidates to fill vacancies. Former offensive coordinator Brandon Streeter – a longtime assistant and Clemson player – was fired on Thursday just a year after being promoted from quarterbacks coach to caller. Former offensive coordinators Tony Elliott and Jeff Scott were also internal promotions. 247Sports reports that Scott will return to the program after South Florida fired him, but Swinney opted to look outside for an offensive coordinator hire and limit Scott to an off-court role.
“As the leader of this program I am responsible for our people and responsible for our results, and although we have taken a step forward offensively in 2022, after evaluating our offense in depth, I felt that this was in the best interest of our program to seek new leadership in this position,” Swinney said in a statement. “These decisions are never easy, but it is my job to assess and evaluate every part of our program every year, and it was just the right time to make a change.”
Streeter was Clemson’s quarterback coach from 2015-21, which saw him develop stars like Deshaun Watson and Trevor Lawerence – both of whom were drafted in the first round of the NFL Draft. However, attacking numbers have fallen sharply in 2021 and were better – but not good enough – last season. The Tigers were sixth in the ACC in passing offense in 2022 at 232.4 yards per game and ninth in yards per pass attempt (6.8).
Quarterback DJ Uiagalelei took much of the blame for the Tigers’ inability to stretch the field deep, and he was eventually replaced by true rookie Cade Klubnik in the ACC Championship Game win. against North Carolina. However, Clemson’s offensive struggles barely ended at quarterback. Clemson’s leading receiver, Antonio Williams, received just 604 yards. It’s a far cry from what Clemson produced in the glory days with studs like Amari Rodgers, Tee Higgins and Justyn Ross. But more worryingly, Clemson has lost six games over the past two seasons, the worst two-year streak since 2012.
Dismissing Streeter is a 180 degree departure from typical head coaching methodology. Swinney was extremely loyal to his assistants, as he also promoted Wes Goodwin to take over the defense after Brent Venables left to take over as head coach at Oklahoma. The method dates back to 2014, when Jeff Scott and Tony Elliott were promoted to co-offensive coordinators when Chad Morris left to take over at SMU. When Scott and Elliott left to take up head coaching positions, Streeter got his chance.
However, Swinney has a strong track record of hiring outside coordinators. Morris was a Texas high school coaching legend with just a year of college experience, but he helped turn the Tigers into a long-lasting 10-win program before taking over at SMU. Venables was kicked out as a defensive coordinator at Oklahoma, but joined Clemson and immediately established himself as one of football’s best assistants. He then returned to Norman in 2022 to replace Lincoln Riley.
