For the first several years of Dabo Swinney’s reign over the ACC at Clemson, it was the Tiger offense that proved explosive and dynamic, propelling the team in orange into the last three incarnations of the College Football Playoffs. That said, though the initial focus was on Deshaun Watson and the prolific offense, Clemson has evolved into a defensive powerhouse under defensive coordinator Brent Venables that rivals, and in some ways surpasses, the defensive standard bearer of college football over in Tuscaloosa.
With a solid back half and a front seven that will send many players to the NFL when all is said and done, the Clemson D is not unlike the defensive units that Bama has fielded under Nick Saban.