AN ACTUAL THING THAT'S HAPPENING: Fulmer to Interview Clemson's Rob Spence

by CornFromAJar on Dec 20, 2007 11:45 PM EST in Tennessee Volunteer Football

Amid all the speculation of what Fulmer may do about finding a new offensive coordinator, here's something he will, in fact, do: interview Clemson OC Rob Spence. So, who is this guy?

Well, judging by his picture, he's not Trooper Taylor. GVX says...

Spence turned down an offer to become offensive coordinator at Minnesota last year to remain at Clemson. He also talked with the NFL's Oakland Raiders last offseason and Alabama about possibly joining Nick Saban's staff.

This season, Spence led an offense that ranked second in the ACC in rushing offense (158.8 yards per game, 50th nationally), passing offense (253.6 yards per game, 41st nationally) and total offense (412.4 yards per game, 47th nationally). The Tigers' 34.2 points per game ranked first in the ACC and 23rd nationally.

Sounds pretty good, and Brent Hubbs (who broke the story[$]) says Spence is "highly respected in the coaching world."

So all that sounds good, but what does the guy's offense look like? FWIW, here's a quick Clemson highlight reel:

And here's two charts, one detailing what Spence's offenses have done while he's been an offensive coordinator, the second what Tennessee's offense has done in the same time span:

The strength of schedule is thrown in there to see what kind of competition the guy has faced, though to be fair it's not really a measure of the kind of defenses his teams have gone up against. Also, the stats at Toledo should probably be compared to the MAC, because the Rockets aren't really competing on a national scale (but they did have some great offenses while Spence was there... against crappy competition. Hmm.)

Other things to consider: what other coaches will this guy bring with him? What's his track record on recruiting? What does he think about orange pants?

Is this an interview that interests y'all as Vol fans? And is anybody as surprised as I am that Fulmer went outside the UT family for his first interview?

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SOS SAME OLD STUFF

Watching the you tube clip I thought it looked like watching a Tennessee clip. Looked like UT plays. I recon its OK, works for me .

OLD SMOKEY

by old smokey on Dec 21, 2007 12:14 AM EST reply actions

Furthermore....

Terry Bowden is being considered for the West Virginia head coaching job, following in the footsteps of Bobby. That would create eve more reason for the vols to after Spence, and I like it as well, the guy knows how to run the football, so hopefully we can get that back on track.

by Power T on Dec 21, 2007 1:36 AM EST reply actions

Watching the YouTube clip,

I keyed in on one thing. When you watch the rushing plays, you'll notice that the offensive linemen of Clemson run with the play all the way to the end zone. In some cases, you'll see the linemen blocking the safeties. Even when they play seems to have clearly moved on beyond the range of a big ugly, you'll see him running to be available for help. During the reverse that starts around 2:55, you'll see #79 (probably the left tackle) with the runner for most of the run. When the runner cuts back across the field, you'll see #67 (probably the right tackle) in the screen. He's too late to help, but he's there and he's running.

That level of play from linemen speaks of a very disciplined offense - one that's been taught to see a play all the way through, not just the individual assignments. If nothing else, Spence seems to get his players to do their maximum amount on a play, not just what's on the chalkboard. That's good to see.

Having said that, I must also caution that this is a highlight reel, and you're seeing them at their best. So, it's there, but it'd take a bit more digging to see how consistent it is.

by David Hooper on Dec 21, 2007 2:34 AM EST reply actions