CLEMSON — In a sign of the times, Dabo Swinney just added a "director of player acquisition" to Clemson's football program.
Hired for the job is Kevin Kelly, who comes to the Tigers after spending the last dozen years with the San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers as Senior Director of College Scouting and most recently Senior Scouting Executive in 2024.
Kelly brings an NFL background to a college sports landscape that's increasingly mirroring the pro model. The scouting and recruiting of high school prospects is more and more being compared to building through the "draft," while adding veterans via the transfer portal is akin to free agency.
There is also a need to properly value players monetarily and manage those costs. A settlement of NCAA antitrust lawsuits is expected to institute a revenue-sharing model where colleges operate with a yearly "cap," which Clemson has estimated at around $20.5 million for all sports in 2025-26.
A football roster might command upwards of 75 to 80 percent of those revenue-sharing dollars if Title IX doesn't force an equal split with women's athletes. Regardless, football players will be the focus of commercial name, image, and likeness (NIL) deals, which universities will also help facilitate.
Kelly was approved by the Clemson board of trustees on Feb. 7 for a two-year contract worth $360,000 annually. In a release, Swinney said Kelly will work alongside general manager Jordan Sorrells and director of recruiting Tyler Clements and his staff on "player acquisition, evaluation and retention."
"To be able to add someone with his experience is a great benefit to Clemson," Swinney said of Kelly. "He’s got over 20 years of front office experience in scouting and evaluation of player personnel, so he will bring a wealth of experience."
Kelly has some interesting Clemson ties via his NFL experience. Most notably, the Chargers drafted Tigers star receiver Mike Williams with the No. 7 overall pick in 2017.
But the organization also selected former Duke linebacker Chris Rumph II in the fourth round of the 2021 draft; that's the son of current Clemson defensive ends coach Chris Rumph.
Kelly also helped the Chargers identify the 2016 Defensive Rookie of the Year, Joey Bosa, and the 2020 Offensive Rookie of the Year, Justin Herbert.
Before getting into scouting, Kelly was a linebacker at Miami and Indiana in the mid-1980s. He was a captain for the Hoosiers' Peach Bowl squad in 1987.
Kelly started his scouting career with the Cleveland Browns from 2001-08, jumping to the Indianapolis Colts (2009-11) and New York Jets (2012) before he landed with the Chargers.
Along with Kelly's hire, Clemson's board of trustees granted Sorrells, the Tigers' GM, a raise from $315,000 a year to $390,000 annually. Clemson athletic director Graham Neff said the raise "reflects the market for the position."
For comparison, Texas Tech GM James Blanchard, who was pursued by Notre Dame for the same position, was just offered a three-year contract worth nearly $1.6 million, according to ESPN. That comes out to $525,000 a year.
Roster management hasn't been especially complicated for Clemson in recent years, because Swinney has been successful in retaining a large percentage of the Tigers' roster each year. But he displayed a willingness to "acquire" transfers this offseason following an abnormally chaotic recruiting cycle.
Clemson added Purdue edge rusher Will Heldt after 2025 defensive end Bryce Davis flipped to Duke and recruit Ari Watford tore an ACL in the fall.
Tristan Smith, a receiver from Southeast Missouri State, joined the Tigers after Troy Stellato (Kentucky) and Noble Johnson (Arizona State) transferred out.
Swinney also brought in a former five-star prospect via transfer, Alabama linebacker Jeremiah Alexander, who was recruited heavily by Clemson as part of the 2022 high school class.
Other raises, extensions
Clemson's board of trustees also approved some raises and extensions for current assistants, along with a couple of new "co-coordinator" titles.
Tight ends coach Kyle Richardson and offensive line coach Matt Luke were named co-offensive coordinators. Richardson's pay was bumped up from $600,000 to $637,500 this year and $675,000 in 2026, while Luke had his current deal extended through 2027 at a price of $1.2 million that year.
Garrett Riley, the Tigers' offensive coordinator, had his contract extended through the 2027 season, as well. He is paid $1.75 million per year.
Defensive tackles coach Nick Eason was named co-defensive coordinator, and his run game coordinator title passed to Rumph. Eason and Rumph were both extended through 2027, topping out at $1.2 million and $1.1 million that season, respectively.
Receivers coach Tyler Grisham, who took the passing game coordinator title from Richardson, and running backs coach CJ Spiller, who took the run game coordinator title from Luke, both saw their salaries increase from $550,000 to $575,000 this year and $600,000 in 2026.
Galloway added
Another move Swinney made this week was bringing in ex-North Carolina receivers coach Lonnie Galloway as an offensive analyst.
Galloway has spent more than a decade in the ACC, coaching receivers at Wake Forest (2011-12), West Virginia (2013-15) and Louisville (2016-18) before he mentored pass-catchers at UNC (2019-24).
When Mack Brown was replaced by Bill Belichick as the Tar Heels' head coach, Galloway was not retained.