
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, November 30, 1993                   TAG: 9311300021
SECTION: SPORTS                    PAGE: B-1   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: CLEMSON, S.C.                                LENGTH: Medium

CLEMSON LOOKS TO WEST

Tommy West, who spent eight years as a West Clemson assistant, was hired as the Tigers' head football coach Monday and charged with restoring the faith of supporters who had abandoned the team under Ken Hatfield.

West, head coach at Tennessee-Chattanooga this season, will coach the Tigers (8-3) in the Peach Bowl against Kentucky (6-5) on Dec. 31 at Atlanta.

"I look forward to getting back together with the Clemson family," he said.

West said one of his main tasks was to bring unity back to the Clemson community.

"I think I've got to get out and get around the Clemson people," he said. "The Clemson people are not real difficult to rally."

Hatfield agreed to leave Wednesday, calling some fans and administrators disloyal for failing to support the team. The school refused to extend Hatfield's contract despite a season with a No. 24 ranking and a bowl berth. Average attendance at home games slipped by 10,000. Clemson bought out the remaining three years of Hatfield's contract for $600,000.

West said he had not yet signed a contract, and his salary had not been discussed. Athletic director Bobby Robinson said West was a "players' coach" and would "do the job that you want and the way that you want it done."

Asked about West's thin experience as head coach, Robinson said it was a calculated risk and that he thought Clemson fans would like and respect West.

West was 4-7 this season with the Division I-AA Moccasins, his first as a head coach. He spent the previous two years as an assistant at South Carolina and one year at Tennessee.

He was an assistant at Clemson from 1982-1989 under former coach Danny Ford.

"I learned a lot from Coach Ford, but I have my own style," West said. "That style includes toughness, consistency and honesty."

by CNB