Like ‘MacGyver,’ Goodwin Has Lots of Swiss Army Knives at His Disposal

With so many versatile players on Clemson’s defense, new DC will have opportunity to be very creative

CLEMSON, S.C. — Wes Goodwin has a problem, but it is a good problem to have.

Goodwin’s Clemson defense has a lot of Swiss Army Knives, especially on the back seven. How does the Tigers’ new defensive coordinator plan to use them all?

“Like MacGyver, I guess,” Goodwin said jokingly.

MacGyver was a popular action-adventure television show created in 1985 by Lee David Zlotoff and starring Richard Dean Anderson as the title character. The television series follows Angus MacGyver, a secret agent who is armed with the ability to use the resources at hand to solve almost any problem or situation he is in.

The instrument he was known for using the most, besides his mind, was a Swiss Army Knife.

Like MacGyver, Goodwin has the reputation for having one of the brightest minds in college football, which led to Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney naming him as Brent Venables’ successor when the longtime Clemson assistant took the head coaching job at Oklahoma last December. And like MacGyver, Goodwin will find ways to use his Swiss Army Knives to help the Tigers stave off opposing offenses this fall.

The Swiss Army Knives at Goodwin’s disposal are safety Andrew Mukuba, linebackers Trenton Simpson and Barrett Carter and nickelback Malcolm Greene.

Mukuba, who can also play corner or nickel, can do a lot of things in the secondary. He can cover as well as anyone. He can blitz, he is physical, and he can play with great depth and vision in the middle of the field.

“There are a lot of things he can do,” Goodwin said about his sophomore safety. “I am excited about where he is from a mental standpoint. Just challenge him every day to go out there and compete and practice at an elite level, which he does.

“He shows up every day with the right mindset and has great effort. He thinks fast. I am really excited about him.”

Goodwin is also excited about Greene, who can also line up at cornerback and play safety. Then there is Carter, who can play the SAM and nickel positions, along with the weakside linebacker spot and safety.

And then there is Simpson, who is the Tigers’ new weakside backer, but he can still play the strongside, which he played his first two years at Clemson. He can still line up and play nickel, while also playing middle linebacker. He also has the ability to drop back in coverage and play like a safety.

“He has had a great camp,” Goodwin said. “From a knowledge standpoint, he has improved tremendously from spring to Day One of training camp. Definitely, all of his hard work in the film room and learning the position—run fits, knowledge and knowing where his help is—I was excited to see where he was starting on Day One.

“Every day, he has continued to get better and better. I am excited to see him go out there in September and perform.”

And it should be interesting to see how Goodwin, like MacGyver, uses his Swiss Army Knives.

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