While the main criticism of Dabo Swinney’s 2023 staff was a lack of experience, there were multiple names who could be on a trajectory to become head coaches in the future.
Dabo Swinney has turned over three key positions on his coaching staff in the past two seasons. His hire of Garrett Riley as offensive coordinator in 2023 was to bring in a new system on that side of the ball, but his hires of Matt Luke and Chris Rumph were to bring in veteran experience.
Time will tell how the hires will work out. Most people are giving Riley a pass on Year 1 because the offensive line was not up to par.
While one of the popular narratives about the staff in 2023 was the lack of experience, the reality is that there are names that worked for Swinney that might eventually end up as head coaches elsewhere one day. Some might happen sooner than others. There is always a chance that some coaches might not have that ambition or will be very picky about the destination. Some opportunities could come next season and others could take several years.
A staff rarely has success without some of the group finding big opportunities to advance their careers. Here are five coaches who will be on Swinney’s staff in the 2024 season who could get the opportunity to lead their own program in the next few years.
Clemson Football head coach Dabo Swinney passed Frank Howard this season to become the winningest head coach in program history. Swinney passed Howard with a win over the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in November, giving him his 166th win.
Following the Tigers’ victory over the Kentucky Wildcats in the Gator Bowl, Swinney now stands at 170 career victories.
In addition to passing Howard, Swinney also passed these well-known coaches in career wins in 2023.
Fisher DeBerry, Air Force: 169 wins
Ken Hatfield, Clemson/Arkansas/Air Force/Rice: 168 wins
Bobby Dodd, Georgia Tech: 165 wins
Fielding Yost, Michigan: 165 wins
Bill Dooley, North Carolina/Virginia Tech/Wake Forest: 161 wins
Swinney continues to hold a lead over active coaches Mike Gundy (Oklahoma State, 166 wins) and Kyle Whittingham (Utah, 162 wins).
These are some of the coaches that Swinney could potentially pass in 2024 with regular season wins.
Wallace Wade, Alabama/Duke: 171 wins
Mark Richt, Georgia/Miami: 171 wins
Dan Devine, Notre Dame/Missouri/Arizona State: 172 wins
Frank Solich, Nebraska/Ohio: 173 wins
Bob Neyland, Tennessee: 173 wins
Don James, Washington/Kent State: 175 wins
Jackie Sherill, Texas A&M/Mississippi State/Pittsburgh/Washington State: 179 wins
Gary Patterson, TCU: 181 wins
If the Tigers were fortunate enough to win the ACC Championship and run the table in the College Football Playoff, Swinney could also pass or tie these legends.
Dick Tomey, Arizona/Hawaii/San Jose State: 183 wins
Darrell Royal, Texas/Washington/Mississippi State: 184 wins
Johnny Majors, Pittsburgh/Tennessee/Iowa State: 185 wins
The next highest active coach is Brian Kelly from LSU, who stands at 186 wins. Unless the Bayou Bengals have a couple dismal seasons, Swinney will find it challenging to catch Kelly.
These totals reflect games played on the field, and don’t count wins awarded retroactively due to forfeits from opponents.
Clemson kicks off the 2024 season against the Georgia Bulldogs in Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia on August 31.
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