CLEMSON – Shelton Lewis plays with emotion, and it’s something Dabo Swinney wants to galvanize for the right thing.

The sophomore cornerback had a strong day in the Orange-White Game, but made a crucial mistake on a late hit. He was flagged for a 15-yard penalty and Swinney was the first to have a talk afterwards.

Lewis is set to start on the outside across form Avieon Terrell. He’s earned that after a trip through the fire as a freshman, but Swinney made sure of the importance of teaching moment.

“He’s a guy that plays with a lot of emotion and I love that. You can’t ever take that away from him but you can’t become emotional. When you’re emotional, then you get outside of yourself and you do stupid stuff like that,” Swinney said.

It was a penalty Swinney called “just extra,” especially in a spring game setting. Looking back to last season, Clemson had three one-possession losses and the Duke game was even decided by nothing more than crucial mistakes.

Those types of decisions hinder an otherwise impressive player and Swinney detailed the importance of controlling that emotion.

“Those are plays that can really cost you in close games. We don’t have a lot of margin for error with the type of schedule that we play and those are plays that get you beat. That can mean a touchdown versus a field goal so just got to play with a little more poise,” Swinney said.

Lewis made two starts as a freshman, including the Gator Bowl. His four pass breakups an interception against Georgia Tech earned him ACC Rookie of the Week honors.

That’s the player Swinney doesn’t want to let get beside himself.

“He just naturally has a ton of fire which is one of the things I love about that kid. He hates to lose, he is a competitive guy but sometimes, he can kind of cross the lines a little bit and become emotional. He’s got to channel it a little better at times,” Swinney said.

If Lewis can turn that emotion into strong play, he he’s shown the level of impact he can make on the field and the Tigers defense needs it.