Orange Blooded [3440]
TigerPulse: 100%
Posts: 2589
Joined: 11/30/13
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BV and the winds of change (kind long winded)
Dec 5, 2021, 10:05 PM
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No other way to say it, this departure sucks. Brent Venables was, IMO, the final cog in the machine of Dabo’s restoration of Clemson football back to national prominence. His defenses during this tenure exuded the intensity and passion he brought to the table. I, like many, had hoped that maybe he was of the Bud Foster ilk, being content to be 1 of the game’s best DCs and not wanting to deal with the add-ons of running an entire football program. However, as much as he was woven into the fabric of Clemson during his tenure, he was also woven into the fabric of Oklahoma and returning to a being a force on the national level after a period of mediocrity in the 90s. He’s taking on a huge challenge in not only leading one of college football’s historical powers, but also a program is going from being the lead bull in their pasture to a new pasture with a few other lead bulls already in place with OU’s impending move to the SEC. I for one wish BV the best in his new adventure and much success (unless the team lined up across from his is decked out in orange and white rocking tiger paws). Also, I hope it’s also not lost on anyone that one of college football’s bluebloods – a program bursting at the seams with wins, championships, and award winners – had to turn to little ol’ Clemson to find the man they believe will lead them to the on-field success that they expect and grown accustomed to.
Unfortunately, this is gonna lead to more questions than answers for a lot of us fans in the coming days. In addition to this, we already know that D-Rad has been pursued heavily by Miami, and Tony Elliott’s name being in the coaching rumor mill as well. One of the things that’s been integral to Clemson’s success under Dabo has been the stability of the coaching staff. Yes, we’ve had position coaches and a co-coordinator move on, but the 3 main pillars (HC, OC, and DC) have remained pretty solid for the better part of a decade. Now, we could be very well facing the departure of both of our top coordinators with the athletic director moving on as well – all in a year where many folks outside the program are all too eager to report of our demise in a year where we missed the CFP and failed to capture the ACC crown for the 1st time in 6 years. Many are afraid that there will be an exodus of current players and recruits while we’re already facing a challenge of filling our scholarship limits while navigating the Wild West of the transfer portal and NIL.
Will we have a couple of players/recruits chose to move on or not come here with BV no longer being here? Perhaps. But I remember reading somewhere that when BV left OU back in 2012, that he told recruits to honor their commitments to OU, and I would feel that would’ve been part of his message last week when out on the recruiting trail with the other coaches. With early NSD around the corner, let’s see how many faxes roll across or don’t roll across before we start proclaiming the sky is falling. And while BV, TE, and whoever else have been key to the success of Clemson, the cultivator of the success and culture is still in charge. Dabo Swinney has proven to be able to find and bring up good coordinators during his tenure and I believe he will do the same once again to ensure that Clemson football will continue to be successful moving forward. He’s also shown to be able to change – he did so in his early tenure when he felt that his coaches and players weren’t meeting the expectations he set forth. And I believe he will do so with the insanity of the transfer portal and NIL, and continue to bring in and develop young men that want to be a part of the culture he’s helped build here. Maybe I'm wrong in all this and maybe Dabo/Clemson do end up backsliding. But given the man in charge not only managed to pull us out of 2 decades of mediocrity that followed the highs of the Ford tenure, but has surpassed those highs during his tenure, I'll take my changes on trusting Dabo to navigate this fork in the road until proven that he can't.
While tonight sucks, the sun is still gonna rise in the morning…and it’s gonna rise on Clemson University, and on plenty of men and women who strive for Clemson to be the best.
GO TIGERS!
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