New Clemson assistants Luke and Rumph hit the ground running for bowl-bound Tigers
CLEMSON, S.C. — Former Mississippi coach Matt Luke felt his break from football was coming to an end, he just needed the backing of a very important group to get back on the field with Clemson.
Luke’s wife and two children gave him the thumbs up to return after Tigers coach Dabo Swinney called about him coaching the offensive line. Luke and fellow new hire, defensive ends coach Chris Rumph, have hit the ground running during Clemson’s bowl practices this week.
“The first year (off) was pretty good,” Luke said. “But then we started getting that itch a little bit.”
And Luke meant all four of them. His boys, Harrison and Cooper, have grown up around football locker rooms and wife Ashley was “probably ready for me to get out of the house,” Luke joked.
The hires of Luke and Rumph were part of a time of change for Clemson’s program after an up-and-down season. The Tigers were Atlantic Coast Conference defending champions and predicted this summer to win another league title.
But a 4-4 start — all ACC losses — left the Tigers outside any championship chase. Clemson (8-4; No. 22 CFP) rebounded in November with four straight wins, including victories over ranked opponents in Notre Dame and North Carolina and a satisfying, 16-7 rivalry win at South Carolina.
The Tigers will play Kentucky (7-5) in the Gator Bowl on Dec. 29.
Swinney’s hires both came outside the program. His penchant for promoting from within became of point of criticism for those bothered by Clemson missing the College Football Playoff the past three seasons — and bluntly pointed out by Tyler from Spartanburg in his radio-show take-down of Swinney’s problems in late October.
But Luke and Rumph are the third assistants brought in to replace Clemson insiders. Luke replaces fired Thomas Austin, a former Tigers offensive lineman, while Rumph takes over for Lemanski Hall, a friend of Swinney since both played on Alabama’s 1992 national champions.
Hall talked with Swinney about wanting to move on to the next stage of his career.
A year ago, Swinney hired offensive coordinator Garrett Riley from TCU after dismissing longtime assistant and former Clemson quarterback Brandon Streeter.
