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Venables And Assistants Receive Pay Raises

Clemson defensive coordinator Brent Venables has no reason to rush into any head coaching job because Clemson is taking care of him financially.
Clemson Tigers defensive coordinator Brent Venables talks with the defense on the sidelines in the fourth quarter against the Miami Hurricanes in the ACC championship game at Bank of America Stadium.

CLEMSON – The Clemson University Board of Trustees’ Compensation Committee approved raises and new contracts for Clemson’s assistant football coaches Thursday morning, keeping defensive coordinator Brent Venables among the highest-paid assistant coaches in the nation.

The Tigers are coming off a 12-2 season in which they won a third consecutive Atlantic Coast Conference championship and advanced to the College Football Playoff for a third straight year.

Venables continues to be the highest-paid assistant under head coach Dabo Swinney, and his new deal will make him second-highest compensated assistant coach in the nation -- at least for now.

Venables’ new contract, which took effect Feb. 1 and runs through Jan. 31 of 2021, calls for a base salary of $245,000 and supplemental income of $1,755,000 for a total of $2 million.

Last year, when he made $1.7 million, Venables ranked second nationally behind LSU defensive coordinator Dave Aranda, who made $1.8 million, according to data collected by USA TODAY Sports

He'll remain behind Aranda again this year; Aranda was approved for a new four-year deal worth $2.5 million -- a $700,000 raise -- by the LSU Board of Supervisors.

Venables also is eligible for several performance bonuses, including $50,000 for a Top 10 defense and $100,000 for a Top 5 defense. His defenses have ranked in the Top 15 nationally in total defense each of the last five years.

The 2016 Broyles Award winner as the top assistant coach in the country, Venables guided a defense that last season led the ACC in total defense, rushing defense, pass defense and scoring defense – a first in program history.

Venables is about to enter his seventh season at Clemson and his eldest son, Jake, will be a freshman linebacker for the Tigers this fall.

Raises and contract extensions also were given to defensive line coach Todd Bates, offensive line coach Robbie Caldwell, safeties coach Mickey Conn, co-offensive coordinator and running backs coach Tony Elliott, defensive ends coach Lemanski Hall, assistant head coach and tight ends and special teams coach Danny Pearman, cornerbacks coach Mike Reed, co-offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach Jeff Scott and quarterbacks coach and recruiting coordinator Brandon Streeter.

Elliott and Scott, who have helped Clemson to a 41-4 record since assuming roles as co-offensive coordinator, each $800,000 last year, but have been bumped to $850,000.

Clemson assistants received raises totaling $560,000, bringing the total compensation for Swinney's nine-person staff in 2018 to $6,285,000, which ranks second nationally behind LSU's $6,615,000 total.

Clemson also was able to recently add defensive ends coach Lemanski Hall as a 10th full-time assistant thanks to a new NCAA rule; he'll make $300,000 this year.

Also receiving raises and new deals were football administrators Jeff Davis, Mike Dooley, Woody McCorvey, Brad Scott and Thad Turnipseed.

Clemson’s men’s and women’s head soccer coaches and their assistants received new deals as well.

FOOTBALL

Todd Bates (defensive line) $300,000

Robbie Caldwell (offensive line) $540,000

Mickey Conn (safeties) $370,000

Tony Elliott (co-offensive coordinator) $850,000 (plus $25,000 bonus as Broyles Award winner)

Lemanski Hall (defensive ends) $300,000

Danny Pearman (assistant head coach/tight ends/special teams) $480,000

Mike Reed (cornerbacks) $440,000

Jeff Scott (co-offensive coordinator/wide receivers) $850,000

Brandon Streeter (quarterbacks/recruiting coordinator), $455,000

FOOTBALL ADMINISTRATION

Jeff Davis (director of player relations) $192,000

Mike Dooley (director of football operations) $197,500

Woody McCorvey (assistant athletic director of football administration) $315,000

Brad Scott (director of player development) $242,500

Thad Turnipseed (director of recruiting operations and external affairs) $202,500

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