It’s Tony’s time: Elliott leaving Clemson to be head coach at Virginia
The Clemson football program is officially losing both its coordinators.
Tigers offensive coordinator Tony Elliott will be a first-time head coach and be named the University of Virginia’s head football coach, per early reports Friday afternoon from Yahoo Sports, ESPN and FootballScoop. After some back-and-forth throughout the week, the two parties came to an agreement Friday with the decision being made official via the Cavaliers’ Twitter page a few minutes before 3 p.m.
“A proven champion. An offensive mastermind. A developer of NFL talent. We got our guy! Welcome to Charlottesville, Coach Tony Elliott!” the athletic department tweeted.
The news comes on a weekend where Clemson is hosting at least three official visits and with the early national signing day just five days away.
It was believed that Elliott was out of the running for the Cavaliers’ vacancy while being a finalist for the same position at Duke. On Wednesday, though, reports surfaced that he was a top UVa candidate. He reportedly flew to Charlottesville with his family but came back, still, as the Tigers’ offensive coordinator.
On Friday morning, the UVa Board of Visitors approved $10.3 million to go toward the Cavaliers’ athletics department, with the transfer likely to go toward a proposed $65 million football facility.
Prior to the news of Elliott leaving for Virginia, Tigers defensive coordinator Brent Venables was announced Sunday as the University of Oklahoma’s new head coach — also the first head coaching job for Venables.
Said Yahoo Sports’ Pete Thamel via Twitter: “Tony Elliott is an amazing 89-9 as a play-caller at Clemson. That’s just an unbelievable run. He’s been as judicious about jobs as any coaching candidate this generation. He’ll start his head coach career at UVA.”
It’s the first time since 2004 that the Tigers will have to replace both coordinators. Then-head coach Tommy Bowden replaced offensive coordinator Mike O’Cain, who was fired, and defensive coordinator John Lovett, who went to Bowling Green State, with Rob Spence and Vic Koenning, respectively.
Between the Blue Devils and Cavaliers, Elliott has been linked to five jobs in the past year and three over the last month, including TCU. That position was filled by Sonny Dykes.
The former Clemson walk-on as a player also found his name mentioned for Auburn’s head coaching job in December and turned down Tennessee’s opening during the offseason.
“Man, it’s really, really been an amazing journey for me to watch Tony since 2003,” Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney said in a statement released on Friday evening. “He was in my first receiver group — a captain. And I’m not quite old enough to be his dad but I look at him like a son. He really is special. I love him and his family with all my heart. I’m just so proud of him and all that he’s done since I hired him in 2011. And then obviously he had never called plays, and he’s leaving here as one of the best to do it. What he did from that bowl game in 2014 to now is just incredible.
“To see him now have a chance to go be the head coach at Virginia — like Brent [Venables] having the chance to go be the head coach at Oklahoma — it’s a blessing because I know what he’s going to bring. Those young men will be blessed by the way we do things here at Clemson. I have no doubt he’s going to be successful. And I’m super excited I’m still going to have a chance to interact with him on head coach calls, our ACC head coach meetings, etc. It’s good to see him move on and sad to see him move on, but it’s also exciting for new opportunity here as well.”
Virginia’s job opened up when Bronco Mendenhall resigned on Dec. 2. He went 36-38 during his six seasons with the program, which included a 6-6 regular season record in 20201. Ending the regular season on a four-game losing streak, the Cavaliers play SMU in the Fenway Bowl on Dec. 29
Tony Elliott age, coaching history, salary
Elliott, 42, was named Clemson’s associate head coach and switched from coaching running backs to tight ends in February, earning a contract extension through 2025 and a $2 million annual salary. His buyout is 25% of his remaining contract, though it can be waived “in sole discretion of the Director of Athletics,” according to Elliott’s contract term sheet.
During his time with Clemson, the Tigers’ offensive coordinator received the 2017 Frank Broyles Award as the nation’s top assistant coach, was named FootballScoop’s running backs coach of the year in 2017 and one of the top-25 recruiters in the nation in 2015 and one of the top-10 recruiters in the ACC by Rivals.
Elliott was working as an industrial engineer at Michelin in Anderson when he decided to begin his career in coaching.
On the word of Brad Scott, who was coaching at Clemson at the time, S.C. State coach Buddy Pough decided to give Elliott a chance in Orangeburg. Pough called Scott a close confidante, so his word carried weight and sent Elliott and his wife, Tamika, to S.C. State for the 2006 and 2007 seasons.
He spent three seasons at Furman (wide receivers, 2008-10) before joining Clemson as running backs coach in 2011. The Tigers were 130-31 in his time there as a coach.
A number of assistants have landed head coaching opportunities after working under Dabo Swinney at Clemson. That list includes Napier, Jeff Scott (University of South Florida) and Chad Morris, who was at Arkansas but is now coaching at Allen High School in Texas.
This story was originally published December 10, 2021 at 2:18 PM.
