CLEMSON – The Clemson Tigers are dealing with an injury in the secondary with starting safety R.J. Mickens out after getting his appendix taken out. It’s on short notice, but Wes Goodwin’s defense is prepared to adjust as they have before.

Mickens is third on the Tigers in tackles with 32, but his value goes beyond that. Experience plays a large factor as he’s a senior and well-versed playing next to free safety Jalyn Phillips. There’s no way to replace him, but Clemson has the young talent to mitigate

In short, it all begins with freshman Khalil Barnes. He showcased his talents in the Florida Atlantic game, where he started and finished the game with six tackles, three pass breakups, a forced fumble and an interception. You name it, he did it against the Owls and it was an early display of what he brings to the table.

In recent weeks, Barnes has a more abbreviated role but that changes at Carter-Finley Stadium. Head coach Dabo Swinney believes in Barnes, and he’ll be the starter against NC State.

“Barnes has obviously played a ton this year. We feel really good about him so he’s gained a bunch of experience. Played well for us so we got Barnes, we got Kylon (Griffin), we got (Sherrod) Covil so we’re fortunate we have some depth at that position that we feel good about,” Swinney said.

It’s key that Swinney mentioned Covil and Griffin, who could see a large increase in playing time versus the Wolfpack. The pair have combined for 15 tackles on the year, with Covil delivering his best performance against Florida Atlantic with six tackles.

There’s a few packages where Mickens plays down in the box, and that’s nothing new to this young group. NC State’s leading rusher is quarterback Brennan Armstrong, so spying could be in order. With that in mind, Clemson’s young safety room will be put to the test in the box against Armstrong, and we’ll have to see how it turns out.