How relationships with Dabo Swinney, Brad Brownell shaped Poppie's first year at Clemson

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It isn't easy being the new kid on the block.

For women's basketball head coach Shawn Poppie, he didn't exactly know what to expect as his tenure at Clemson began.

From an Xs and Os standpoint, he understands what he wants on the court. When it comes to his relationships with those outside the program, those types of expectations were shattered.

As Poppie's introductory press conference went on, Clemson men's basketball coach Brad Brownell quietly observed from afar, just days removed from the Elite Eight in Los Angeles.

Behind the scenes, there was no quick vacation either, as Brownell went right to work in the portal, but made sure time was made for his new counterpart in Clemson's basketball world.

Both have been able to relate more to each other as time has passed, with both having to rebuild rosters quickly through the portal.

"I would say two to three times a week I'm either in there or he's in here and we're just bouncing all the ideas off of each other,' Poppie said, "learning more about Clemson for me, obviously he's been here a number of years, but talking X and Os, talking about how to manage a roster. They've been phenomenal in sharing their knowledge with me, but more importantly, they're welcoming, and they've also become fans of ours as they obviously know we are fans of theirs."

As Poppie settled into his role, one element he didn't anticipate would be as strong from the start were the relationships cultivated overnight.

That type of embrace hasn't been taken for granted, and he feels like that isn't as common in other spots across the country.

"There's a synergy here," Poppie said, coming out of a 14-17 debut campaign. "You've got that Paw across your chest that you instantly become family and people genuinely care for one another and will go out of their way to make sure that they're helping, and it's not fake, it's not anything but them being themselves. And I think that's what Clemson's done, especially in the athletics, has done an unbelievable job of hiring the right people that fit Clemson."

Brownell wasn't the only one who was quick to make an impression, either.

Quickly into Poppie's tenure, he, Brownell, and Dabo Swinney traveled together to an IPTAY event. Swinney conversed with the newly hired head coach on the plane ride, quickly establishing a strong connection.

Swinney's message to Poppie was incredibly encouraging, and the gesture went a long way in making him feel comfortable in a new environment.

"We were on the plane flying to Charlotte and I'm sitting right across from Dabo and he's just picking my brain about the class we're putting together and kind of the position we are in as a program as we're trying to build it and kind of encouraging you just to stay the course, don't try to cheat steps, you're doing things the right way," Poppie told TigerNet. "I feel the momentum I'm watching from afar continues to lean on us. And so there's a mentorship there. I think that to me, it probably means more than anything else."

With that also comes different perspectives, with Poppie sitting in on Swinney's meetings to see how he operated with a bigger staff.

"It's been an instant connection for whatever reasons from the moment I stepped foot on campus, I've been very fortunate that they've opened their arms," Poppie said. "I've just dove in and hopefully I'm not in their way, but I spent a number of times, I went to a couple of football meetings where Dabo was running a meeting. I wanted to see what it looked like, how his voice gets across to so many staff members, and it is a consistent theme of I don't care who you talk about, it's the same message."

As relationships with Brownell and Swinney continue to evolve, Poppie understands that the athletic department's synergy is rare in a disconnected era of collegiate athletics.

That genuine nature has created a web that Poppie believes benefits the entire ecosystem at Clemson, knowing that his situation isn't as positive as other programs tend to deal with.

Poppie may no longer be the new kid on the block, but when it comes to learning more about the inner workings of the university, leaning on Swinney and Brownell for more knowledge never hurts.

"They've been phenomenal in sharing their knowledge with me, but more importantly, they're welcoming but also become fans of ours as they obviously know we are fans of theirs," Poppie said. "But it's been a genuine relationship that I'm very, very fortunate to have because not many women's basketball coaches could say they're a text or a phone call or a FaceTime away from their head football coach and head men's basketball coach where it's a genuine relationship."

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