Clemson football: 5 potential replacements if Tony Elliott were to leave for TCU

Five potential replacements for Clemson football if Tony Elliott left for TCU

5. Tom Manning (Iowa State offensive coordinator)

Tom Manning is a name that many Clemson football fans might not be too aware of, but there’s no doubt that he could help the Tigers in some major ways.

Manning took over as the offensive coordinator at Iowa State back in 2016. He had a brief stint as the Tight Ends coach for the Indianapolis Colts before returning to Iowa State in 2019. In his first year back with the Cyclones, he was nominated for the Broyles Award.

To appreciate what Manning brings to the table, you only need to look at Iowa State’s total offensive numbers the year before he left for the Colts versus when he got back. Iowa State finished 96th nationally in total offense, including last in the Big 12 at running the ball the year that Manning was gone. He came back and made changes, and they improved drastically, finishing 27th and 34th in the FBS in total offense the last two seasons.

Manning has a history coaching offensive lines and tight ends, so that background would also give Clemson an added boost at two positions that have been sorely lacking over the last few years.

Currently, Manning is making $925,000 per season so Clemson would easily be able to give him a boost in salary to potentially lure him away from Ames.

There are other names out there that we can explore as well and we’ve heard a lot of Clemson football fans bring up former OC Chad Morris as an example. But what about you? If Tony Elliott were to leave for another job, who would you want to see given the play-calling responsibility?