Clemson, Dabo Swinney add Matt Luke, Chris Rumph to coaching staff

Clemson has made a couple of big additions to its coaching staff. Dabo Swinney has hired former Ole Miss head coach Matt Luke to lead the Tigers o-line, while former Tigers defensive end coach Chris Rumph is back to lead the Clemson defensive ends.

Luke is replacing Thomas Austin, who was fired by Swinney on Thursday. Rumph is taking over for Lemanski Hall, who was also let go last week.

Both coaches received three-year deals. Luke’s contract is for a total of $3.275 million. He will make $975,000 in Year 1, $1.1 million in Year 2 and $1.2 million in Year 3.

Rumph’s deal is for a total of $3.05 million. He will receive $950,000 his first year, followed by $1 million and $1.1 million.

Matt Luke was most recently the associate head coach and offensive line coach at Georgia in 2020 and 2021. He stepped away from his position following the 2021 season to spend more time with his family but is now ready to get back into coaching.

Luke was an assistant at Ole Miss, Tennessee and Duke, prior to leading the Rebels program in 2017. He spent three seasons as the head coach at Ole Miss, compiling a 15-21 record.

Matt Luke is being hired to shore up a Clemson offensive line that has been inconsistent the past few years.

Chris Rumph is returning to Clemson after spending the past four seasons working in the NFL, most recently as the defensive line coach for the Minnesota Vikings.

In addition to previously working at Clemson, Rumph also spent time as an assistant at several other schools, including Alabama, Texas, Florida and Tennessee.

Rumph, who is a South Carolina native, won a pair of national titles while coaching Alabama’s defensive line.

Clemson finished the regular season 8-4, winning its final four games after a 4-4 start. It was a strong ending to the season but a disappointing year overall for a team that was picked to win the ACC during the preseason.

Instead, it was Florida State and Louisville that advanced to Charlotte for the ACC Championship game.

The Tigers had an excellent defense this season, but their offense struggled. That is part of the reason Austin was let go. The hope for Clemson is that Luke can help get the offense back on track and have the Tigers competing for championships once again, while Rumph can help make an already excellent Clemson defense even better.

More on Dabo Swinney moving on from Thomas Austin, Lemanski Hall

Dabo Swinney released the following statement on his decision to fire Thomas Austin:

“Today, I made the difficult decision to seek new leadership for the offensive line. It is my responsibility as head coach to make difficult decisions that I believe are in the best interest of our football program and the young men that comprise it. After a few days of deep thought and evaluation, I believe this was a change we needed to make.

“I love Thomas and his entire family, and Thomas has been a great representative of Clemson University and Clemson Football in every role — as a player, as a support staff member and as a coach. On the field, he was one of the best Tigers we’ve had, and his role as a captain and as a great leader is immortalized in concrete at Tiger Walk outside Memorial Stadium. I know God has a great plan for his future.

“I’m incredibly excited about our group of offensive linemen which could have seven players who have started significant time for us, and I look forward to seeing them continue their growth.”

He also had this to say about Lemanski Hall no longer being a part of the Clemson program:

“Lemanski Hall and I met and had a great conversation about his future and long-term goals both personally and professionally, and after great thought and discussion, we came to a mutual decision for him to seek opportunities to advance his career elsewhere.

“I am so thankful for Ski and his wife, Leslie, and their family. Lemanski and I have been almost lifelong friends back to 1989 and he is someone I love like a brother. I’m appreciative and thankful for the impact he has had here at Clemson.

“Since joining our program as an analyst in 2015, he has been part of six College Football Playoff teams, seven ACC title teams, four national championship game appearances and two national titles. Since becoming an on-field coach in 2018, he has coached and recruited great players like Clelin Ferrell, Austin Bryant, Myles Murphy and so many others, and I am proud of the work he did in developing potential Freshman All-American T.J. Parker this year.

“I am grateful for both his impact here and for his friendship, and I wish him nothing but the best with his next endeavor.”