How The “Same Brain Wave” Helped Markus Strong Transition From Oklahoma to Clemson

When Brent Venables left the Clemson Tigers in 2021 to become the head coach at Oklahoma, it began a coaching relationship that others followed.

Names like former coordinator Wes Goodwin, defensive tackles coach Todd Bates and former defensive end Miguel Chavis now serve as position coaches on the Sooner defense, being former mentees of Venables during his nine-year tenure with the Tigers. However, this past offseason marked the first time a player has moved between the two programs since the rise of NIL and the transfer portal.

That player was defensive tackle Markus Strong, and he’s seen comparisons between both head coach Dabo Swinney and Venables’ systems in just several weeks into his Clemson tenure.

“Coach V and Coach Swinney, they both have kind of like, I would say they’re the same brain wave,” Strong said on Monday evening. “Like sometimes, I’ve listened back to what Coach Swinney is saying. It was like, I can almost finish his sentence sometimes because I’ve heard the same thing from Coach V.

Strong revealed to the media earlier this week that he entered the transfer portal because he “wanted to be the guy.” Being on an Oklahoma defense that features all-conference standouts, he wanted to take that experience and bring it to another top team.

Knowing that Venables “loves Clemson”, he said that he could plug into a defensive line that lost key pieces from last season. Venables also talked to Swinney about Strong during the portal process, with the redshirt junior saying that his former head coach had “good words” to say.

“The culture there is almost exactly the same, but it’s just like, ‘Okay, I know what I’m going to fit into, but now, this group here at Clemson needs someone to come in and lead them, like take the place of where [DeMonte Capehart] left and Peter Woods,’” Strong said.

And it’s allowed him to be comfortable in his new home already, leading guys like freshman Kam Cody to be a leader on this defensive line in just several weeks since he arrived in the Upstate. That’s the player that he wants to be, and he’s taking that experience from Swinney’s close friend and bringing it to the guidance of defensive tackles’ coach Nick Eason.

Strong has already formed a close-knit relationship with Eason, mainly because his coach treats him like a freshman. That’s what he wanted from his new school: not getting any shortcuts.

“What I wanted coming in is for someone to push me to the extreme because I want to go to the next level,” he said. “So, that’s what I wanted coming in: he treats me like a freshman, just like I wanted him to. So, he comes in, he pushes me, and it’s complete transparency.”

Not to mention that Clemson defensive coordinator Tom Allen’s energy is similar to that of Venables and the Oklahoma coaching staff.

“It’s straight to business,” Strong said. When we’re on the field, it’s time to lock in. We’re going to get it down, get it done and that’s how we’re going to do it.”

Oklahoma coaches like Chavis and Bates put in a good word from their time with the Tigers, allowing for more of a smoother transition for Strong going into the 2026 season. Now, he will look to bring his power onto the starting defensive line while also serving as a leader.

The Sooners made the College Football Playoff in 2025-26 after all, and Strong will use that experience to bring Clemson back.

“A playoff run for them is something I expect for us,” he said. “We had that last year. I expect the same thing here. It’s that mentality like ‘We got to go get this, go earn it.’”