Clemson Football: Assistants who need a big 2023

Kyle Richardson

For the record, I like Richardson. I think he is a smart guy. He did a good job with the tight ends last season.

As for his other job – passing game coordinator – things improved over 2021, but they didn’t improve enough. Otherwise, Streeter would still work for Clemson.

When I heard Riley had been hired, one of my first thoughts was that this would be a fantastic fit for Richardson. His background is in an air-raid style offense.

Going into 2022, I expected that Richardson would bring more air-raid-type elements to the Clemson offense, which would make it more dynamic. It didn’t take long to see that the staff and players weren’t ready for such a big change last off-season.

That isn’t the case now. Richardson’s ideas should mesh well with Riley’s system. This should work great.

If it doesn’t, the blame won’t fall on Riley. As we mentioned earlier, Grisham will be on the hot seat if this offense doesn’t produce through the air. Whether or not Richardson gets caught in the aftermath will depend on just how bad things went.

I expect Richardson will thrive working alongside Riley, but the subject is coaches who need a big 2023. Richardson does need the passing game to be big next year, or Riley might want to bring in one of his own guys to coordinate it.