The heart and soul of the Clemson defense last year, linebacker Ben Boulware wears his emotions on his sleeve. This year defensive coordinator Brent Venables will count on him to lead an inexperienced defense into what Clemson fans are hoping will be a repeat of last year’s championship run.
Boulware talks about preparing for the Auburn game on Sept. 3, the maturity of the defense and much more in his meeting with the media earlier this week.
Q: Does it matter which quarterback Auburn brings out?
Boulware: “I leave that up to Coach V. We have our game plan. They’re all going to throw the ball, they’re all going to run the ball, and they’re all pretty athletic. I think people sleep on (quarterback) Sean White, but he can definitely move with his feet. All three of them are athletic guys, they all can throw the ball, so that doesn’t really change how we prepare.”
Q: Do you believe in the adage “Defense Wins Championships?”
Boulware: “Absolutely.”
Q: Do you think that will be true this year with the way this team is designed?
Boulware: “I hope so. We played (bad) in the national championship and we lost, so I think if we would’ve played well we would have won the championship.”
Q: You said that a lot in Charlotte, too. Is that the attitude of the entire defense?
Boulware: “I think that there were definitely games last year where we didn’t play at a high level. But on the big stage, we definitely made some big plays. Alabama has a great offense and a great defense, they’re going to find some holes now and then and they did that. I do think that there were some areas where we could’ve stopped them but we didn’t. This year the defense has to be more consistent, play at a high level and finish.”
Q: As you get ready for Auburn in the days leading up to a game what kind of process do you go through individually, mentally? Is there any kind of routine you like to go through?
Boulware: “The coaches kind of give us a game plan on their offense and you just study that whenever you get the chance to. They set it up for how we are supposed to study it and what we are supposed to key in and look at. It’s just our job to do it and study it. It’s as simple as that.”
Q: Coach Venables mentioned J.D. (Smith) and Jalen (Williams) as guys that he can really count on. What have you seen from both of them that you didn’t see last year? Where have they made their biggest strides from then to now?
Boulware: “I don’t think people realize how much of mental aspect goes into college football. All of our guys are very talented physically. I think they’ve grown tremendously in the mental aspect of the game with formations, reading keys and knowing what to do in various plays. I think physically it’s always been there for them; they’re all physically gifted guys. Since spring they have just made huge strides mentally and been able to play fluidly and confidently.”