Once Goodwin Got in the Flow, Clemson’s Defense Took Over

Tigers Held Iowa State to 20 points and 167 Yards Below Their season average

Wes Goodwin was happy with the way his Clemson defense played in last Wednesday’s Cheez-It Bowl victory over Iowa State. However, he was not satisfied.

“No, because we gave up 13 points. We were looking for a shutout or whatever,” the Tigers’ new co-defensive coordinator said following the game.

True, Clemson (10-3) did give up 13 points in its 20-13 win, but the Cyclones had to work for it. In his first game calling plays, Goodwin held one of the Big 12’s best offenses to 20 points and 167 yards below their season average.

The Tigers also forced two critical mistakes – an 18-yard interception return for a touchdown by Mario Goodrich and a forced fumble to seal the victory, which was also credited to Goodrich.

“I think for the first time, everything went really well, bar from my expectations and stuff,” Goodwin said. “It is not like we had preseason scrimmages and stuff to learn the process with me being inserted into the play calling role and just getting into the flow of things, substitution wise, that sort of thing. Learning where to stand on the sideline to signal to the guys and that sort of deal. So, just the whole operation, I thought, was above my expectations.”

Iowa State, which was averaging 33 points and 437 yards per game coming into the Cheez-It Bowl, was limited to 270 total yards. Brock Purdy, who led the Big 12 in passing yards and passing yards per game, threw for just 204 yards on 23-of-39 passing.

Though the Tigers sacked Purdy just once, they had him scrambling the whole game and they constantly were putting pressure on the All-Big 12 quarterback.

Also, the Cyclones (7-6) ran for just 66 yards and averaged just 4.5 yards per play overall.

“The whole game was a lot of fun for me,” Goodwin said. “All of the situational football that you prepare for, the two-minute situation, being in field goal range, four-down territory, just communicating and teaching guys in the moment and stuff. So, just getting into the flow of the game, it was really fun…

“…But no twelve men or ten men on the field, so you always worry about that type of stuff in first time roles. But I thought overall, our game-time operation was unbelievable.”

Goodwin described his first game as coordinator as “living a dream.” Making the game plan and then calling a dominant game, was just the icing on the cake.

“It is just an unbelievable experience, and I can’t wait to see what the future holds,” he said. “But I was not nervous at all. I kinda got in my groove and rolled from there. It was a lot of fun.

“I was not nervous at all. I have been preparing for this moment for a long time. I got in the flow of the game, and I started rolling from there.”

And so did the Clemson defense.