CLEMSON — Body language is contagious on the sidelines, and the Clemson Tigers made an emphasis to improve on heading into the home opener. Linebacker Barrett Carter discussed it heavily during the lead up to the game, and it clearly made an impact in Death Valley.

Wes Goodwin’s defense was a group of banshees Saturday, flying around the field and stifling whatever plans Charleston Southern had on offense. Option attacks are difficult to defend regardless of the talent level, and Clemson made it look easy.

Confidence is key, and it was clear the Tigers found some in front of a home crowd. Freshman defensive end T.J. Parker saw that fire on the sidelines, and it’s something this group can build on.

“We were more hyped up on the sideline. I feel like the energy was definitely there. Coach challenged us to have more energy, bring more energy, support your teammates so we did a great job of doing that today,” Parker said.

Dabo Swinney was the first to show that energy as he was animated before the Tigers came down the hill. That contagious body language for Clemson led to a defensive outing that surrendered just three points had it not been for early offensive mistakes.

In the second half, the confidence turned into identity for Goodwin’s unit. Best is the standard as they say, and a second half shutout lives up to that.

The second half against the Buccaneers is exactly what the Tigers needed moving forward, regardless of the opponent. With the pair of Florida Atlantic and Florida State up next, Parker feels like this defense found themselves in Week 2.

“It definitely helped us out a lot, boosted our confidence definitely knowing that we can go out and execute, allow no points,” Parker said. “I think we had less than 100 total yards on the day and that’s always good for the defense to let us know that we keep playing how we can, everyone will be held to that same standard.”