Hootie Ingram
What is that old saying? "Don’t take over for the legend, take over for the guy that took over for the legend." Hootie Ingram tried to take over for a legend and he found the task to be a challenge.
Howard was the coach of Clemson for nearly three decades and was easily the winningest coach in program history at the time. When he retired in 1969, Ingram was hired to replace him. Like Howard, Ingram was an alum of the University of Alabama.
Ingram was from the Frank Broyles coaching tree at Arkansas and was considered one of the best defensive coaches at the time.
Things had trailed off a bit towards the end of Howard’s tenure, so Ingram had the job of rebuilding the program, and it proved too much. He compiled an 11-21 record in three seasons for a 34.6% success rate, the worst of the modern era.
There is always a silver lining, however, and the best thing to come from Ingram’s tenure as head coach was The Paw. Introduced in 1970, it is the symbol of the program and Clemson athletics in general. For that Hootie Ingram, we sincerely thank you.
Not to mention he’s still the best Hootie from the state of South Carolina, but I digress…..
Next: Tommy West