The changes haven't stopped for the Clemson Tigers.
The team returned to the practice field Friday with a very different look to their staff. Along with Dabo Swinney leading his first practice since getting the job fulltime, three new staffers -- Charlie Harbison, Danny Pearman and Woody McCorvey -- joined the workout.
Gone was longtime defensive coordinator Vic Koenning, who left for Kansas State after getting no assurances from Swinney he'd be kept on past the Gator Bowl.
"There've been a lot of things going on on the the field and off,"
Swinney said.
Then again, these Tigers (7-5) have fought through dramatic changes already this season -- and excelled.
Clemson, ranked ninth in the country and the clear-cut preseason choice to win the Atlantic Coast Conference, instead stumbled from the start. With the team in midseason freefall, coach Tommy Bowden walked away for the good of the team and Swinney was tabbed to take over.
Swinney, 39, brought a dose of energy and enthusiasm missed in Clemson's first half and the Tigers responded by winning four of their final five games to qualify for a bowl game that didn't seem possible in mid-October.
So why mess with the chemistry?
Why not when you've got the chance to bring on three talented football people in Harbison, Pearman and McCorvey, Swinney says.
All three have ties to Clemson and to Swinney. Harbison was a Tiger assistant from 1995-97, then coached on Alabama's staff with Swinney. Pearman, a former Clemson tight end, got his start as a Tiger graduate assistant before moving on to the Crimson Tide during Swinney's time there. And McCorvey, a longtime Tiger aide to Danny Ford, was the Alabama assistant who called a skinny, walk-on receiver in Swinney from the scout team to the varsity nearly two decades ago.
Swinney would eventually earn a scholarship and a 1992 national championship ring with Alabama.
Harbison will coach defensive backs, which Koenning had done. Pearman will work with tight ends and tackles, while offensive line coach Brad Scott will concentrate on guards and centers. McCorvey will act as director of football operations, "my national security adviser,"
for the time being.
"They've all blended in well,"
Swinney said.
Swinney doesn't expect any drop in attitude from his defense, despite the change at the top. The Tigers have given up just 24 points their last three games, all wins and all necessary for the team to make it to the New Year's Day bowl.
Swinney says inside linebackers coach David Blackwell and outside linebackers coach Ron West will co-coordinate the defense against Nebraska.
"David's been here. Ron's been here,"
Swinney says. "I've got confidence in them to do the job."
Swinney says he won't name a defensive coordinator until after the bowl game. He's got some pretty good candidates: reports have former Tennessee coach John Chavis having met with Swinney and interested in the spot.
Tiger tailback C.J. Spiller thinks there's little that can derail the momentum that's built up the past month.
"We're professionals. We understand this is a business,"
Spiller said following practice. "The guys on defense were close to coach Vic, but they know we're still a football team."
Someone else Clemson won't have for the bowl game is injured defensive end Ricky Sapp. Swinney said the junior had surgery Friday to fix the partially torn ligament in his right knee and that he looks forward to the recovery process.
Swinney said also the fall recruiting took a downturn when Bowden left -- at least two Clemson verbal commitments switched their pledges to rival South Carolina -- has started to turn back around now that the coaching situation has steadied. "We were working a little short-handed," Swinney said. "But the kids seem very interested and that's all we can ask for."
Swinney demanded his players go "all in"
when he took over. That won't stop now he'll be in charge for much longer than anyone imagined two months ago.
"We've got a very good group with a lot of pride,"
Swinney said. "They want to win and they'll lay it on the line."
No matter who's coaching.
