Wes Goodwin sees both the good and the bad in Clemson's defense against Wake

Wes Goodwin says they had to knock off some rust on the D-line during the game.

by David Hood - Senior Writer - Mon Sep 26 18:17:35 GMT-04:00 2022

CLEMSON – Defensive coordinator Wes Goodwin knows there was a lot of “bad” in Saturday’s win over Wake Forest, but he also knows there was some good.

Goodwin met with the media Monday to look back at the win over the Demon Deacons and ahead to this week’s primetime matchup against NC State.

"I always say it's never as good or never as bad as it seems. You go back and critique everything, from the week of prep to in-game adjustments to how we played certain sets,” Goodwin said. “Obviously, the big plays and penalties were the glaring things. What stood out most was the true character of the guys, their heart in the fourth quarter and overtime. As bad as that third quarter was, those guys rose to the occasion."

Goodwin said that while he learned something about his defense, he also learned something about himself.

"Definitely a lot of things I could have done differently, but I think the biggest thing is I didn't panic, and looking guys in the eyes on the sideline is they see you're not panicking and you've got confidence in what you're doing,” he said. “That calmness on the sidelines. And we ended up winning it at the end.

"Sometimes you call the blitz, and you're busted or you get a sack. It's give and take. You call the defense, and you call the play with the utmost belief that that's the best thing to do. And sometimes you have to live with those consequences."

He was asked if there was a common thread in the struggles of the secondary.

"I mean, it seemed like every coverage we played, we gave up a big play. Whether that was Cover 2, Cover 3, quarters, whatever it was,” Goodwin said. “It was one out of each we gave up a big play it seemed like. Great teaching moments for the guys. We have their attention. They want to learn."

While there is certainly room for improvement in the secondary, there is also room for improvement along the vaunted defensive line.

"I'm not going to put a grade on it, but there are some things we could have done better no doubt,” he said. “We've had some guys banged up, so the rust definitely showed on those guys. TD (Tyler Davis) and Bryan (Bresee) coming back, hopefully getting XT (Xavier Thomas) back. Ruke (Orhorhoro) has had the wrap on the his hand. The younger guys, Payton Page and DeMonte Capehart, learning to play the game. Hopefully, we can start to get the chemistry and continuity going up front and start dominating up front like we know we're more than capable of.

"There were definitely some moments where we could have done some things better and at least affected the quarterback, whether that's a presence in his face or sacking him. We just have to do a better job sometimes of out-working the opponent, out-competing, and finishing rushes."

The Tigers host the Wolfpack Saturday at 7:30 pm in Death Valley (ABC). ESPN’s College GameDay is scheduled to be in town.