From scary landing to flying high, Swinney expects Grisham to thrive in new role

Swinney thinks Tyler Grisham is perfect for the job of recruiting coordinator.

by David Hood - Senior Writer - Fri Feb 11 08:00:05 GMT-04:00 2022

Tyler Grisham’s first recruiting trip in late 2019 started with airplane trouble and a scary landing, but Grisham is now flying high as the Tigers’ recruiting coordinator.

When former defensive tackles coach Todd Bates left for Oklahoma following Clemson’s win over Iowa St. in the Cheez-It Bowl, it not only opened up that job but also the job as the Tigers’ recruiting coordinator. It’s a role that’s been held by Jeff Scott and Brandon Streeter, but Bates held the post since the end of the 2019 season.

Swinney could have moved Streeter back into that role, but Streeter was recently promoted to offensive coordinator, and since he already has the responsibility of leading the quarterbacks, Grisham was Swinney’s most obvious choice.

Swinney told the media that he has spent enough time with Grisham on the recruiting trail to know that his former recruit is ready for the job.

“It was an easy transition. He’s more than ready,” Swinney said. “I’ve been able to be in enough meetings with him and on the road and different settings. He was more than ready to be that on-the-field liaison guy that you’ve got to have.”

When Jeff Scott left to become the head coach at South Florida a few years ago, Grisham immediately went on the road recruiting and caught a flight from Clemson to join offensive coordinator Tony Elliott in south Georgia to visit a prospect. The altimeter on the plane quit working and the crew had to make a scary landing with Grisham clutching the arm rests all the way down.

Welcome to the world of recruiting.

"That was interesting but I got my feet wet then,” Grisham said. "I knew how it worked when you went to a high school and engaged with the coaches. I’ve had that experience.”

Though he just completed his second season as a full-time coach, he will be entering his 13th overall season in a variety of roles at Clemson, including four as a player (2005-08), two as a graduate assistant (2014-15) and four as an offensive analyst (2016-19).

In addition to serving as an offensive analyst, he served as assistant camp director in 2018 and 2019. A four-year letterman for the Tigers from 2005-08. He finished his career with 132 receptions for 1,390 yards and eight touchdowns. Grisham signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers as a free agent in 2009, appearing in four games that season. He served on the Steelers’ practice squad in 2010 and 2011 and with the Denver Broncos’ practice squad in 2012.

Swinney said that while there are a lot of people who make the recruiting department work, there has to be a boss to make sure it all comes together and Grisham is that guy.

“We’ve got a whole (recruiting) department, but somebody’s got to tie it together from the coach standpoint to make sure we’ve got all the I’s dotted and T’s crossed. He’s great,” Swinney said.