Imagine a coach’s son dreaming big, not about playing in the NFL like every other kid who idolizes the game, but about jumping directly into an alternate football universe. It’s like skipping the dusty minor leagues and going straight to the big leagues of alternative success. That’s exactly the mood lighting in the Venables household these days. Brent Venables, a coaching titan who’s been a fixture on college football sidelines, has a son, Tyler Venables, who’s mapping his own course in football. Back when Brent was the defensive coordinator at Clemson, Tyler made his way to the Tigers.

And the decision made perfect sense. It was the kind of father-son football legacy story people love. The son follows the dad to the same turf. Over his time at Clemson, he’s racked up 114 tackles, including 6.5 for loss, a sack, one interception, and eight pass breakups in 876 defensive snaps across 50 games. But he only started three of those games. So while Tyler’s been a reliable part of the defense, he hasn’t exactly been the star safety lighting up scoreboards or NFL scouts’ draft boards. But fast-forward to today, and Tyler is now in his sixth year playing college football at Clemson. That’s quite the tenure.

Now, usually, if you’re a high-profile NFL prospect, you wouldn’t be lingering around college football long enough to hit a sixth season, right? The fact that Tyler is still wearing the Clemson jersey and hitting the field says a lot. But here’s where the story takes an interesting detour. Instead of fading quietly into the sunset of NCAA football, Tyler recently made a public appeal. “I’ll GA, I’ll intern, I’ll do anything to get my foot in the door. So if you’re watching this, I need a job,” he said. So he wants to be on the field, but for calling plays. He’s signaling loud and clear that coaching college football is where his heart is. Long before Tyler made any public announcements or social media appeals, the idea of coaching was already germinating in his mind. But what might surprise you, though, is who planted that seed.

It’s none other than Clemson’s head coach, Dabo Swinney, and the Tigers’ defensive coordinator, Wes Goodwin. “I kind of felt like I was inside a video game,” Tyler said. While also listening to somebody play chess. Listening to Coach Goodwin talk, here is why he is thinking this, and here is what is going on here, and what set they are in, and what call we are going to do, and here is why. It was just stuff like that. It was just a really cool experience to hear all that goes on behind the scenes. I had never had that experience before, ever.” Tyler is a kid who’s spent years learning the intricacies of defense from his dad, Brent Venables. Fast forward to today, and Tyler is all in. No more half-hearted musings; he’s publicly embracing his future as a coach.

It’s kind of a beautiful full-circle moment, right? Brent Venables’ own journey is a perfect blueprint for it all. Brent played college football at Kansas State as a linebacker and defensive back. So he knew the game from the inside out as a player, and that foundation clearly fueled his mind for football. After hanging up his cleats, he jumped into coaching, starting at his alma mater and then rising through the ranks with a laser focus on defense. He earned his stripes with stints at Oklahoma State and Oklahoma before becoming Clemson’s defensive guru. His work was so on point that he bagged the prestigious Broyles Award in 2016. Now, Tyler’s charting a similar path. He got the player part down, spending years on the field, learning first-hand from his dad and watching that transition from player to coaching genius unfold right before his eyes.

Will Tyler follow Brent to Oklahoma?

When Brent Venables took the Oklahoma job, it seemed natural to expect his son Tyler to pack up and join him there. Tyler surprised many by choosing to stay put at Clemson. The decision wasn’t made lightly. He’d already played for his dad for two solid years. So he realized that it was time to step out of that shadow and build a football identity of his own. Tyler also considered the fact that Clemson’s defense was coming back strong. That, too, with four returning players and a proven system under coordinator Wes Goodwin.

And that gave him a stable and competitive environment. Injuries during spring practice also played their part, causing Tyler to miss valuable time and giving him even more reason to stay in a familiar place where he had already established himself. But Brent supported Tyler’s decision completely. Now, with his playing days winding down and Tyler setting his sights on coaching, a new question pops up.

Will he eventually follow his dad to Oklahoma as a coach if Brent manages to hold on to his job? It’s a real possibility. Coaching offers a natural next step for Tyler, and Oklahoma could be the perfect place to learn the ropes alongside his dad, assuming the football gods decide to keep Brent in Norman.