Lorenzo Ward

Lorenzo Ward is in his first season at Clemson after joining the program in the spring of 2024. He serves as a special assistant to the head coach and defense and as an assistant linebackers coach.

Ward joined the Tigers with 30 years of full-time coaching experience across the NFL, FBS and FCS levels. He has produced 16 NFL defensive backs, including first-round picks DeAngelo Hall, Stephon Gilmore and Jaire Alexander.

Ward most recently served as the defensive coordinator at Tennessee-Chattanooga from 2019-23, including a 2021 season in which his defense led the SoCon in scoring defense, total defense, rushing defense, passing defense, pass efficiency defense, sacks and interceptions. His 2023 unit helped return the Mocs to the FCS playoffs for the first time since 2016.

Ward’s coaching career began in 1991 as a graduate assistant at his alma mater, Alabama. He later served as Chattanooga’s defensive backs coach from 1994-98 before taking the same role at Virginia Tech from 1999-2005. He spent the 2006 season coaching defensive backs and special teams for the Oakland Raiders before spending eight years in the SEC as Arkansas’ secondary coach in 2008 and South Carolina’s defensive coordinator from 2009-15.

Ward served as Fresno State’s defensive coordinator in 2016 before joining Louisville in 2017 as its secondary coach. In his second season with the Cardinals, he served as the program’s interim head coach following the dismissal of Bobby Petrino.

A native of Greensboro, Ala., Ward played for the Crimson Tide from 1986-89 under coaches Ray Perkins and Bill Curry. He and his wife, Tara, have a son, Lorenzo Jr., a former running back at The Citadel.