New Tigers defensive coordinator Tom Allen talks Clemson transfer portal philosophy

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Clemson went into the transfer portal this offseason and successfully landed key pieces for the first time under Dabo Swinney in this new era of college football.

Tom Allen is the beneficiary in his debut season as Clemson's defensive coordinator with a projected starter at one defensive end spot in Will Heldt (Purdue), and then also in the linebacker corps with former 5-star Alabama signee Jeremiah Alexander.

Allen’s portal philosophy molds well with his new head coach.

“It’s one of those things, and we were similar at Penn State. You don’t lose a lot of players and there’s no need to go into the portal to replace them,” Allen told an Indiana sportstalk show Friday. “You really want to build your roster from the high school ranks. You kinda say you want to build it through the draft and not by free agency. That’s kind of the mindset of both Penn State and Clemson. I think that’s important, but at the same time, for a variety of reasons – an injury, a guy chooses to leave who’s been there a few years – it’s hard to bring in a high school player to replace that older guy. I think that will continue to be the case here.”

Allen sees programs across the sport stuck in a cycle with portal use.

“It’s kind of a philosophical thing. Some teams go pure portal, and once you go that route, it’s kinda hard to get out of that cycle,” Allen said. “At the same time, it’s about player development here. We want to do a great job of that and don’t expect to have a high number of spots. The 105(-roster count) will be a new world we’re dealing with roster management and how that looks, and the revenue share piece that’s coming into frame here in the fall. There’s a lot of exciting changes in college football and the portal is one of those, it can be positive or negative based on how people view it but I do think there is some good things about it.

“At the same time, you’re trying to find the best fit for your culture, player-wise, and the more players you keep and can develop those the better off it is in the program and we’re going to do a great job of that here at Clemson.”

Alexander Clemson bio

Former five-star recruit and high school teammate of Peter Woods who transferred to Clemson from Alabama in early 2025

Before Clemson: Played his first three collegiate seasons at Alabama from 2022-24, appearing in 27 games for the Crimson Tide … appeared in three games and made one tackle while redshirting in 2022 … played in 24 of the Crimson Tide’s 27 games across the 2023-24 seasons and was credited with eight tackles in those contests (three in 2023 and five in 2024) … played his prep career at Thompson HS in Alabaster, Ala., where he played alongside current Clemson defensive lineman Peter Woods and helped the Warriors to state titles in 2019, 2020 and 2021 … was a consensus five-star recruit, garnering five-star recognition from Rivals, ESPN, PrepStar and the 247Composite … was the sixth-ranked player on the Rivals250 and Rivals’ No. 1-ranked weakside defensive end in the class … ranked No. 18 overall on the ESPN300 … tabbed as a five-star and the No. 32 player overall on the On300 list according to On3 … listed No. 13 overall by the On3 Consensus … earned a four-star grade from 247Sports, which listed him as the No. 5 edge rusher and 49th-rated recruit in the country … earned MaxPreps Alabama Football Player of the Year honors in 2021 after he totaled 93 tackles, including 29 for loss, with 10 sacks and 27 quarterback hurries as a senior at Thompson …selected to the Under Armour All-America Game following his senior campaign.

Heldt Clemson bio

Edge rusher who transferred to Clemson after two productive seasons at Purdue

Before Clemson: Played his first two collegiate seasons at Purdue, appearing in all 24 games for the Boilermakers from 2023-24 … credited with 56 tackles (10.0 for loss), 5.0 sacks and a fumble recovery he returned 16 yards for a touchdown as sophomore in 2024 … recorded 2.5 sacks and the 16-yard scoop-and-score in back-to-back games against ranked opponents against Illinois and Oregon that October … played at Carmel (Ind.) High School, where he was twice selected to the Indiana Football Coaches Association Top 50 All-State team … concluded his prep career with 190 tackles (18 for loss) and 10 sacks.

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