Chad Morris once saved Dabo Swinney's job. Will Clemson coach hire him as OC again?
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CLEMSON — Clemson football may bring in a familiar face to be its new offensive coordinator.
The Athletic and Tiger Illustrated reported Chad Morris, 57, is a candidate to replace former offensive coordinator Garrett Riley, who was fired on Dec. 29.
This would be Morris’ third stint with the Tigers after being the team’s offensive coordinator from 2011-14 and returning to serve as an offensive analyst in 2023.
Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said in November that he had gotten away from his “instincts” and recalled the “critical” and not “very popular” staff changes he made after the 2010 season when the Tigers finished 6-7, the worst season in his tenure.
A noteworthy move he made was firing offensive coordinator Billy Napier for Morris, who spent one season as Tulsa’s offensive coordinator in 2010 after coaching high school football in Texas for 16 years. These staff changes helped Clemson begin its 12-year streak of winning at least 10 games, which included eight ACC titles and two national championships.
Fifteen years later, Swinney may make the same move to get Clemson back on track after the Tigers went 7-6, the second-worst year in his full 17 seasons, and missed the College Football Playoff and ACC championship.
How Chad Morris saved Dabo Swinney’s job at Clemson
Morris introduced a tempo, spread offense that featured motion and trick plays during his time as Clemson’s offensive coordinator. After averaging 24 points (86th in FBS) in 2010 before his arrival, Clemson averaged 33.6 points (24th), which helped the Tigers win the ACC championship for the first time in 20 years and reach double-digit wins for the first time since 1990.
Clemson went on to rank in the top 10 nationally in scoring offense, averaging 41 points (6th) in 2012 and 40.2 points (8th) in 2013. The Tigers offense regressed in 2014 though, averaging 30.8 (53rd).
Morris was also critical in the development of quarterback Tajh Boyd and helped recruit quarterback Deshaun Watson, who led Clemson to the national championship in 2017 and a title game appearance in 2016.
Chad Morris coaching history besides Clemson
Morris departed Clemson after landing his first head-coach position with SMU from 2015-17. He compiled a 14-22 record and made one bowl-game appearance. SMU improved each season under Morris, winning two games in 2015, five in 2016 and seven in 2017.
Arkansas hired Morris in December 2017, signing him to a six-year contract. However, he only reached the second year of his deal.
Morris went 2-10 in his first year in 2018, marking the school’s first 10-loss season in program history. Arkansas started 2-8 in 2019, prompting the school to fire him after a 45-19 loss to Western Kentucky. He won zero SEC games with the Razorbacks with all of his wins happening against Group of Five or FCS schools.
Why Chad Morris did not coach in 2025
Morris bounced around after being dismissed from Arkansas. He served as Auburn’s offensive coordinator in 2020, which was his last time calling plays for a college team. Then, he coached high school football in Texas in 2021, was an offensive analyst for South Florida in 2022 and Clemson in 2023 and coached wide receivers for Texas State in 2024.
Morris opted to not coach this season, choosing instead to watch his son Chandler Morris play quarterback for Virginia. Chandler Morris played under coach Tony Elliott, who Swinney also hired in 2011 as the team’s running backs coach.
Derrian Carter covers Clemson athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email him at DCarter@usatodayco.com and follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @DerrianCarter00
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Will Clemson coach Dabo Swinney hire Chad Morris as OC again?
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