5 Best Coaching Hires of the Dabo Swinney Era
By John Chancey
Mike Reed
Comings and goings happen all the time with staff in coaching football. Head coaching positions are often turned over. Assistant coach positions turn over even more.
Clemson is known for being among the most stable staff in all of college football, so it is notable that Mike Reed is the longest-tenured coach on Swinney’s staff. He arrived in 2013. 2024 will be his 12th season with the Tigers.
Reed is an example of Swinney hiring a coach who had notable work experience. Reed had been in the NFL, the FBS, and the FCS for a dozen years before he was hired at Clemson. He started his coaching career in Germany.
Reed is a Boston College alum, and at least one group (247Sports) posted that sources told them that Reed is a candidate for the head coaching position recently vacated by Jeff Hafley.
Reed is deserving of an opportunity to be a head coach, and I would wish him all the best if he did leave, but his departure would be a blow to the program at any time. For him to leave in February when the team is preparing for spring ball would be especially challenging. He is probably the most underappreciated coach on the staff right now.
No. 1: Brent Venables