Every football program in the country likes to say they're a family, and Clemson is no different.
But at Clemson, the word family is not just a metaphor. They mean it literally, too. On Sunday, the Tigers' 2020 recruiting class added the pledge of 3-star safety Tyler Venables. Yes, that's the son of defensive coordinator Brent Venables.
Venables committed to Clemson over Wake Forest, Coastal Carolina and others. He's a productive quarterback for D.W. Daniel High School but, at 5-foot-10 and 191 pounds, he projects to play safety at Clemson.
Once he arrives at Clemson, Tyler Venables will join a roster that includes Will and Drew Swinney, Jake and Tye Herbstreit and his own older brother, Jake Venables.
The Venables boys have a point in their favor over the Swinneys and the Herbstreits -- both of them are on scholarship, while Dabo and Kirk's sons walked on.
A 3-star recruit in the 2018 class, Jake Venables recorded two tackles in two games as a true freshman; he'll be a redshirt freshman this fall. Will Swinney has worked his way into a role as a wide receiver and a holder. He caught seven passes for 30 yards and a touchdown last season and, at 5-foot-8 and 185 pounds, he'll audition for Hunter Renfrow's role now that Renfrow's seemingly 15-year career as Clemson's unguardable water bug is finally over.
Drew Swinney played in 17 snaps as a true freshman in 2018, and the Herbstreits will be true freshman this coming fall.
As a recruit, Tyler Venables is No. 17 of Clemson's 17-man 2019 recruiting class, but that's really more of a statement on Clemson's ridiculously loaded recruiting class than Venables himself.
It's no secret that family is a primary reason Papa Venables hasn't pursued a head coaching job, and that seems even more true now that he'll have a chance to coach both of his sons for the next four years.
“Again, you never say never, but man, it doesn’t get much better, if at all, than what we have (at Clemson),” he told the Charleston Post & Courier in 2017. “Like I said, I’m thankful for what I have and I just have a very good perspective on what we have. There are thousands of guys that would love just the opportunity to be a very small part of this program, so it’s a great situation.”