Clemson Football: Five keys to victory against the Charleston Southern Buccaneers

The defense needs significant improvement in tackling

It is unrealistic to expect perfection, even against an FCS opponent.

That being said, the biggest thing the Clemson defense needs to take out of this game is confidence that they can be efficient and reliable (you might see a pattern here).

Clemson was bad with their tackling Monday night. Players we know are good athletes and quality players were letting the opponent slip through their fingers. Sometimes their positioning was so bad they couldn’t even lay a finger on them.

The backfield had a couple of busted coverages that left Duke wide receivers wide open. They shouldn’t allow a single uncontested catch on Saturday.

There is no reason this defensive line shouldn’t get to the quarterback. Every lineman that enters the game should have the goal of getting a tackle for loss.

Coach Swinney said after the game:

"“It’s almost indescribable what I just saw. It’s incredibly frustrating when you had so much opportunity. … It’s routine stuff. The basics. The fundamentals. Basic, basic stuff.”"

That’s what the goal should be. This defense needs to nail the basics and fundamentals.

Perfection should not be the expectation, but it should be the goal.

No goofs on special teams

Stop me if you’ve heard this before….

It is unrealistic to expect perfection, even against an FCS opponent.

That being said, the biggest thing the Clemson special teams need to take out of this game is confidence that they can be efficient and reliable.

This is easy for Robert Gunn. He needs to make a field goal. It doesn’t matter if it is short or long. Center of the field or the left hash. He needs to put three points on the board and start rebuilding his confidence.

Aidan Swanson needs to put the punts where they belong. Distance is great, but I’ll take a coffin corner punt any day of the week. Placement, placement, placement.

I’d love a kick return or punt return for a touchdown. I’ll settle for making smart decisions about which kicks to field, which to avoid, and making good decisions with fair catches.

Even better, just make sure if you decide to catch it that you catch it.

I know this all sounds basic but what this team needs most, in all three phases, is the experience of stepping on the field and doing their job efficiently without a disaster. These players probably feel snakebit right now.

That’s the best summary of each of the first three things: avoid disasters.