Warning: Clemson's "Mad Scientist" at work

CLEMSON, S.C. - Clemson's Rob Spence begrudgingly nods and smiles when the nickname "Mad Scientist" comes up.

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Yes, the Tigers' new offensive coordinator has a savant's passion for play calling that sees him scribbling schemes at team meetings or doing a summertime film study of NFL playoff offenses. But to box him as simply a talented lover of X's and O's is to misunderstand what drives Spence to succeed.

There is Spence's dedication to long-distance running; he's competed in the Boston Marathon. There's his love of family: wife, Susan, and daughters, Samantha and Sydney Rae. And there's his religion that he shares easily and says has carried him every step of his rising college football career.

"I'm not just totally enmeshed in (football), and I think that brings some health to my life, some balance to my life," says Spence, 45. "That's where my family comes in, my faith comes in, there is a balance."

He will not sacrifice those for his career. "I would not take a job where the head coach didn't think family was important," he said. "I wouldn't take a job where the head coach didn't think faith was important."

Spence says the right equation lets him happily throw himself into planning winning offenses as he has nearly everywhere he's gone.

As Toledo's offensive coordinator the previous four seasons, Spence built the Rockets into one of the country's top attacks. A year ago, Toledo joined Southern Cal, Louisville and Oklahoma as the only schools with at least 3,000 yards passing and 2,000 rushing. It also was where Spence got his "mad scientist" tag because, he says, he spreads his notes, charts, files, diagrams and folders throughout his office like some wild-haired chemist.

So far, Spence's touch has worked with the 20th-ranked Tigers (2-0, 1-0 Atlantic Coast Conference).

Despite not scoring an offensive touchdown, Clemson defeated then-ranked Texas A&M 25-24 on Jad Dean's school record six field goals. A week later, the Tigers trailed at Maryland 24-14 before rallying with two fourth-quarter touchdowns. The winning TD came on Reggie Merriweather's 38-yard run on third-and-7, a surprising call given that Clemson's led by one of the top passers in the ACC in fifth-year quarterback Charlie Whitehurst.

"Yeah, you might not expect that out of us before," Whitehurst said.

This week comes Clemson's biggest test yet: No. 13 Miami at Death Valley.

Spence and his players are still adjusting to each others' traits.

Merriweather and receiver Chansi Stuckey remember a spring meeting when they looked around to see Spence in the back of the room, drawing up plays. The offense's homework under Spence this offseason? "To know everybody's job not just ours," Stuckey said.

Spence's meetings aren't slack-fests filled with good humor. Whitehurst remembers when Clemson coach Tommy Bowden popped in and fired off a quip that fell flat. "The punch line didn't register" with Spence, Whitehurst said.

Soon enough, Bowden learned to keep his mouth shut. Bowden says his sense of humor is about an eight on a scale of 10. Spence's "is considerably lower," the coach said.

When asked if he's seen any "mad scientist" moments from his first-year offensive coordinator, Bowden begs off, "I don't want to make him mad."

"I know I'm way too serious," Spence admits.

But what can you expect when you get the chance to bring your varied attack to a larger stage? As the season approached, Spence often thought of a Bible passage in the Book of Esther: "Perhaps you were made for a day like this."

Before the Texas A&M game, he looked out among the crowd of 80,000, the pageantry and hoopla, and felt a serenity. "I knew that God put me there for a purpose. Now maybe it wasn't to win," Spence said. "But I felt this peace that does pass every understanding."

It's something Spence carries with him at all times. On his long, daily runs over Clemson's hills, he says his "imagination wanders" as he contemplates game plans, lineup changes, Scripture passages or family matters. At the end, he feels perfectly in tune with all the things he loves.

So far, the Tigers' attack shows a similar balance. Their running game sits in the top half of the league after languishing near the bottom a year ago. Clemson is second in pass efficiency; Whitehurst has missed just nine of 41 throws and hasn't been picked off yet.

The statistics Spence sought to show success at other places aren't what he wants here. He says he's focused on victories, no matter how they come.

Crazy nicknames aside, the Tigers don't see anything mad about that.