Defensive Players Post-game Conference
By: Darby Childress
Following an impressive season opener for the Clemson Tigers, where they defeated the Wake Forest Demon Deacons 37-13, Defensive Coordinator, Brent Venables, Defensive end, K.J. Henry, and Linebacker, Mike Jones Jr. met with the media to discuss how the game played out. Coach Venables seemed impressed with how his defense held up against the in-conference competitors, stating “our guys responded really well in the first half. They really took Wake Forest out of the game”. With that being said he knew the game was not without mistakes, “there are some fundamental things we have got to get better”, with the occasional blown coverage, and missed tackles. With a few members of last year’s defense leaving, and/or being unable to attend yesterday’s game, Brent admitted that he was “pretty anxious going into this game knowing we had nine guys going into their first college game”. Of those nine freshmen, Myles Murphy and Bryan Bresee came into the game as if they had played on a college stage for years. Bresee, a defensive tackle, had a half-sack, blocked a kick, and had two tackles, one of which being for a loss, in the first game of his college career.
Sophomore K.J. Henry spoke on Bresee’s performance and some of his pregame anxiety, stating that he doesn’t “think I got asked more questions in a hotel room before”, “He is such a great kid, and wants to be so good That is what you want”. K.J., who got his first career start yesterday, shared that the day was “kind of sad”, he talked to his family before the game, but “not being able to see them there watching me on my first start” did bring down the excitement some for him. That did not keep him down long though, he shared that “it was so much fun to be back on the field. I was just happy to be out there with the guys”. He also shared how appreciative he was to be back because “that is not the case for a lot of athletes out there right now”. The general consensus of the night was that everyone was ready to be back in Death Valley, next weekagainst the Citadel, but even more ready to see their fans again. K.J. Henry stated “we are going to be so appreciative and so excited to see out fans. The fans matter and I’m glad Clemson has worked out a safe way to have them see us”, “It is going to be better than a sold-out crowd”. Clemson fans can look forward to seeing the Tigers back at home next Saturday at 4:00 PM on the ACC Network.
