Even after 12 years away, Chad Morris is feeling right at home at Clemson. Morris returned to Dabo Swinney's program after a dozen seasons to serve as his offensive coordinator once again. Frankly, his re-entry point could not have been better. Clemson is coming off its worst year in over a decade. The Garrett Riley hire did not take. It has played a part in Clemson not starting the season out ranked.
While Swinney had been reluctant to change, he knew he had to do something differently offensively. He may be the ultimate CEO-type of a head coach, but he is not a play-caller. It is why he reached into his past a little bit to bring Morris back into the fold. The best part is so many key contributors on the Tigers' offense are loving the energy this system provides, including starting tackle Brayden Jacobs.
"I think this offense is a really special thing," Jacobs said. "If all 11 guys give all their effort, even if some guy messes up, we have something for it. The play may not get as far as it’s supposed to go, but his offense is so special. It has definitely changed the way our mindsets have been going into fall.”
You can feel it in his tone that Jacobs loves getting to work with Morris as his new coordinator. While he did not exactly throw Riley under the bus with his comments, you can tell the sophomore from Milton, Ga. and the son of New York Giants legend Brandon Jacobs wanted to put last season firmly in the rearview mirror. It is full-steam ahead with Morris running the Clemson offense this fall.
“Last year, our team might not have been as connected as we are this year," Jacobs finished. "We’re hungry, and I guess we want revenge.”
Brayden Jacobs feels like Chad Morris has come in and changed Clemson’s mindset on offense.
— Grayson Mann (@gray_mann21) August 17, 2026
How? A more connected unit than last year:
“Last year our team might not have been as connected as we are this year…We’re hungry and I guess we want revenge.” pic.twitter.com/ilo4kC9sc6
Chad Morris is quickly winning over key members of the Clemson offense
What Jacobs had to say about Morris matters. The son of a former NFL star has been groomed to know what great football looks like. His first season with Clemson was anything but that. Clemson always has been, and always will be, run differently under Swinney's guidance. However, he has been in place long enough to identify the right coaches to work for him when other ones do not pan out.
Clearly, this team is more motivated than ever before. While everyone handles success differently, they all respond to failure largely the same way. When someone gets embarrassed, they will typically pick themselves up by the bootstraps, and put in the honest work to improve. Jacobs might not speak for everyone, but this is the sentiment we are mostly getting out of fall camp. This year must be different.
Admittedly, it was a tad controversial for Swinney to hire Morris as Clemson's offensive coordinator. He may have been great in this role before, but so much has changed since 2014. This includes an absolutely dreadful two-year run leading Arkansas. All that aside, players like Jacobs seem to be responding to him quite positively. Morris seems to be in his bag back at his old stomping grounds.
As the old adage goes, the definition of insanity is doing the same things and expecting different results. Changes had to come to Clemson. While they may not have been of the variety those outside of the Clemson family would have wanted, Morris is perfect for what the Tigers need right now. They needed an offensive mind who will get the most out of the players lining up for him on fall Saturdays.
Swinney gets a ton of flack for his decisions, but him re-hiring Morris is looking like a total no-brainer.
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