Clemson Football: 3 biggest concerns heading into 2022 season

PITTSBURGH, PA - OCTOBER 23: D.J. Uiagalelei #5 of the Clemson Tigers celebrates with Beaux Collins #80 after rushing for a six-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter against the Pittsburgh Panthers at Heinz Field on October 23, 2021 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images) /

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Clemson DB Tyler Venables and his father, former Clemson DC Brent Venables.Syndication The Greenville News /

2. Coaching staff attrition

Clemson lost some heavy hitters in the coaching world this offseason.

Outside of losing some key players on both sides of the ball, the Tigers lost both coordinators to head coaching jobs which means that Dabo Swinney has to hope that the culture is so strong that even “new” blood can’t mess with anything. That’s a big hope.

Tony Elliott took the head coaching job at Virginia after spending years as the Tigers’ offensive coordinator. That means the offense will have new blood albeit in the form of a coach that had already been a quarterbacks coach in the form of Brandon Streeter. Did Swinney settle for a coach who was already on the staff? Will that hurt the offense? It’s possible.

On the defensive side of the ball, Brent Venables left for the Oklahoma job and Wes Goodwin has taken over after spending a few years as a senior defensive assistant. Again, did Dabo settle just so he could put someone familiar with the program in charge? Maybe.

Losing two all-world coordinators should definitely be a cause for concern.

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