By Heath Bradley.

By Heath Bradley

CLEMSON  – Clemson linebacker Tig Willard was quick to point out that the No. 17 Tigers must move on from the loss to Florida State and focus on Saturday’s opponent Boston College, where Clemson will play at 3:30 p.m. on ESPN2.

However, he was also quick to let those know earlier this week that the loss really left a sour taste in his mouth as a leader of this team.

“What happened in the past is in the past, we cannot dwell on what happened,” he said. “We have to move on and come back stronger and better as a team. We must get better and more mature form the mistakes me wade.”

With the offense scoring 37 points against one of the top defenses in the nation, and Clemson winning the turnover and penalty margin, it is tough to believe the Tigers were still defeated by double digits last Saturday night in Tallahassee. The fact the Clemson defense allowed almost 700 yards and 49 points to FSU has Willard upset that the defense could not slow down the Seminoles enough to propel the Tigers to victory.

“That is really tough on me. I feel that if our offense puts up 20, 21 points, we should win that game,” the senior said. “I feel like me being a leader on the defense, we should have won that game. It hurts me really bad to feel like I let down my team a little bit.”

Losing a game to ACC Atlantic Division rival Florida State makes Clemson’s chances as repeating as ACC Champions tough, but not impossible. Willard knows the Tigers fate is not 100 percent in their own hands, and they must take care of their own business, but also hope for some help along the way.

“To lose to a team that is in our division, it is kind of tough on us,” he said. “We need them to lose. We feel like we are in the car with them, but we are in the back seat. It is tough on us.”

It is now a new week, a new opponent, another chance at victory. Willard is excited to get back to practice and get better. As far as the Tigers struggles on defense, they are all items he feels can be fixed.

“Most of the stuff was fundamentals, knowledge, and being more aggressive on some things,” he said. “All of that stuff can be fixed.”

While Willard is focused on the improvement of the defense as a whole, he is also focused on becoming the best player he can be for this defense, working hard to improve on all of his mistakes, no matter how small.

“I am not sure of the biggest thing. I have a bunch of things I need to fix, as well as the other guys on the team do too,” he said.

As the season continues, the Clemson linebacker hopes he cannot only improve his game, but also improve as a leader of the defense. His ability to not only lead his teammates during games, but also in practice, is something that Willard sees as a key to defensive success.

“I go slap them on the head, jump around, just try and get everyone pumped up,” he said. “I do that in practice, because to play a certain way, you have to do it in practice. I do it all the way, so the guys know to look at me.”