Tony Elliott will stay with Clemson football for the time being.
Clemson football fans rejoiced this week when offensive coordinator Tony Elliott announced that he was returning to the Tigers after flirting with the open job at Tennessee.
Don’t get it twisted, Tony wants to be a head coach but he is also smart enough to know that as a black coach, he will more than likely only get one chance at being a head coach. Miss me with the “not everything is about race” because being a head coach in college football and the NFL is.
When you look at the history of college football, just one African American man has been fired from one Power 5 job and hired at another – Kevin Sumlin. Tyrone Willingham was fired from Notre Dame and hired by Washington but Notre Dame is not a Power 5 program.
Look at the last several coaching cycles and the names of coaches that keep being recycling – Hugh Freeze, Lane Kiffin, Steve Sarkisian, and Will Muschamp. All of them have been fired by Power 5 programs and all of them but Freeze has been given a second opportunity at one almost immediately. Even Freeze has had his name linked to every Power 5 opening over the last 12 months.
Now, look at guys Randy Shannon, Kevin Sumlin, Charlie Strong, Derek Mason, and Willie Taggart. All of them fired for not winning enough within the first three years at a job. Randy Shannon still holds the highest graduation rate for football players in the history of Miami football and has not sniffed another head coaching job at a Power 5 school since being fired.
Not one of the African American coaches were fired for cause – they simply didn’t win enough. Conversely, Freeze, Sarkisian, Kiffin, and Muschamp have all had run-ins with the NCAA.
And Tony Elliott knows this.
Tony is one of the smartest people you will want to meet. He may lack imagination in his offensive scheme but there is no denying his intelligence.
He turned down the Tennessee job because he knew it was a sinking ship with the worst yet to come and he did not want this to be his only opportunity to lead a program. He knows that as a black head coach, the requirements to keep a job are in fact different than his white counterparts.
He also knows that he would be fighting his way to success at Tennessee and his job security and future ability to be a head coach are also riding on it. History tells Tony that this would be his only shot at a major program and he would be better off staying at Clemson as an assistant because of that.
Whether fans want to admit it or not, the stigma attached to black coaches is real and a young guy like Tony Elliott has to make sure that when he leaves Clemson, he is leaving for a great situation that is going to give him an equal opportunity and equal ability to flourish.
He has to make sure that he is not walking into an ambush like Charlie Strong did at Texas or Willie Taggart did at Florida State when he finally takes the next step professionally.
There is no doubt that Tony Elliott has paid his dues and should be a head coach. Those that want to argue that race isn’t a factor and bring up Brent Venables, are arguing just to hear their own voice. Brent has had many opportunities to be a head coach but wants to coach his sons, those are two very different scenarios and something that should never be compared.
Tony should have been able to take the Tennessee job. He should not have had to think about what happens as a black coach should the alumni and boosters want to run him out like Strong and Taggart were.
Yes, be happy that Tony Elliott is back at Clemson but be sad that he has to think about more than just being a great head football coach and that his next opportunity to be a head coach could be his last simply because of the level of melanin in his skin.