The Clemson Tigers shook the college football world this week with the announcement of their new defensive coordinator being hired from one of the best units in the country. Clemson made things official on Tuesday with former Indiana Hoosiers head coach and Penn State Nittany Lions defensive architect Tom Allen to take over the Tigers defense and replace the fired Wes Goodwin.

Tom Allen carries a wealth of coaching experience, dating back to 1992. He will be tasked with reviving Clemson's defense after a rough 2024 season.

With Allen’s hiring, five of Clemson’s 10 assistant coaches are now set to make at at $1 million in annual salary in 2025 (Allen, Riley, Matt Luke, Chris Rumph and Nick Eason). That’s on top of Swinney’s annual salary of $11.25 million for this year and puts the Tigers comfortably among the nation’s top 10 in total assistant coach pay.