Was Brother Oliver Responsible for Clemson's Defensive Game Plan?

NativeTider

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With all due respect to Brent Venables, I will bet you a ham sandwich Brother Bill Oliver was the one who came up with Clemson's defensive game plan. From Clemson lining up in a zero defense to the creative coverages and jumping of routes, it had Oliver's fingerprints all over it. Much the same way he got into Torretta's head in '92. Oliver has Clemson ties and is reportedly close to Dabo. What do y'all think?
 

westide

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I don not think it is proper to accuse a former Bama player and coach of helping an opponent without any evidence to back up your accusation. Also, Venables is one of the best defensive coordinators in the country. He is quite capable on his own of coming up with an effective defensive plan. I agree with others that Clemson had been preparing for Bama for a long time.
 

CoachJeff

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It's a 4 hour drive from Durham to Clemson. What former Alabama coach would be able to help Clemson with a short drive like that? Who would have the motivation? Who had a defense known for shutting out team after team?

You guessed - Wallace Wade.
 
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Krymsonman

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I don not think it is proper to accuse a former Bama player and coach of helping an opponent without any evidence to back up your accusation. Also, Venables is one of the best defensive coordinators in the country. He is quite capable on his own of coming up with an effective defensive plan. I agree with others that Clemson had been preparing for Bama for a long time.
I agree with this. Clemson didn't really have to prepare much for their conference championship game. Probably took a day to figure out Pitt. Probably only took a day, maybe 2 to figure out Notre Dame. That's a whole lot of other time to work on BAMA.
 

RedWave

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It is not at all uncommon for a coach to look for input from other coaches in various situations. Seems like Saban has done this many times. So, even if Dabo did bring in Brother Bill for some input, who cares? That said, I don't think it is too likely. I know the two have some common ground from when they were both in Tuscaloosa, but I am not sure how much deeper their relationship goes. Oliver hasn't coached in a while, so I don't know how useful his input would be now. I know he is pretty well hated by Bama fans for going to that other place and all, but he sure did coach some really good defenses when he was with us.
 

NativeTider

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You may think it's far fetched but he coached at Clemson, has a son who is a Clemson grad and is close to Dabo. I don't know why it's so hard to see him consulting with them. If he did I don't harbor any ill will. If I was in Dabo's shoes I might have done the same thing. Coach Oliver has one of the most creative and brilliant defensive minds ever especially when it comes to the secondary.
 

RTR91

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Brother is 79 and hasn't coached in 20 years. He coached at Clemson almost 30 years ago. Maybe Dabo called for help, but being out of the game for 20 years with the way offenses have changed, I'm going to say this wasn't Brother's work.
 

dayhiker

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Oliver was DC.
The searches I did before posting the question say he was db coach and wasn't promoted to DC until 93. I tried to find a listing of the 92 staff and the 92 media guide, but didn't have any luck.

My recollection, though, is that he was the DC. That's what prompted the question.
 

teamplayer

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With all due respect to Brent Venables, I will bet you a ham sandwich Brother Bill Oliver was the one who came up with Clemson's defensive game plan. From Clemson lining up in a zero defense to the creative coverages and jumping of routes, it had Oliver's fingerprints all over it. Much the same way he got into Torretta's head in '92. Oliver has Clemson ties and is reportedly close to Dabo. What do y'all think?
I would be surprised if Oliver was responsible for implementing the plan, but he may have been asked to help with the design as some type of analyst or off-season visitor. That game certainly reminded me of our whipping of Miami who had one of those unstoppable, unbelievable offenses back in 92. Defense wins championships.
 

dayhiker

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Wiki page for the 1992 team doesn't even list DC title under coaches but does list Mal as the OC. Maybe it was understood but he was finally given the title in 1993?
That's what I wondered too. I wonder if anyone had the title in 92? I'm surprised at how difficult it is to find this information.
 

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