CLEMSON — For safety Khalil Barnes, being back on the field felt like a blessing last Saturday. After sitting out the previous two games with a hamstring injury, Barnes was grateful to suit up for the Clemson Tigers in their loss to Syracuse.

“It was weird,” he said about having to stand on the sidelines and unable to help his team. “But I also got a chance to be vocal and do more for the guys.”

The absence marked the first time he had missed a game since high school, and he admitted the time away felt unfamiliar. Even though his role shifted while he was sidelined, Barnes said he would not have returned if he wasn’t fully ready.

“I wouldn’t be back out there if I wasn’t feeling good,” he said.

Last Saturday, Barnes played nearly 60 snaps. The next morning, the injury wasn’t on his mind—execution was.

Clemson (1-3, 0-2 ACC) allowed the Orange to tally nearly 200 yards before the end of the first quarter and gave up 303 yards by halftime, as it trailed 24-14 at the break.

“We simply just have to execute,” Barnes said. “Everybody wants to go out there and make a play. Everybody wants to make their family proud.”

For Barnes, it comes down to trust.

“We know that we need to trust the scheme, and when we trust it, it works. We just have to do it the whole game,” he said. “It’s not a knowledge thing, it’s the fundamentals and executing it.”

In the locker room, frustration was clear, but so was perspective.

“At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter if we lost 12 games in a row. We’re not playing for a record, we’re not playing for a win or loss,” Barnes said.

“I’m personally playing, so on Saturday, my parents don’t feel like they have to put a hood on and cover their backs when they walk out the stands,” he continued. “So they don’t have to be ashamed of me and what I do on the field.”

And for Barnes, the game always comes back to purpose.

“It’s about remembering why you play,” he said.

That message echoed when head coach Dabo Swinney addressed the team on Monday. Swinney didn’t dwell on the poor play. He showed why he is the head coach and why he is respected.

“He could’ve came in there and put [up] all the bad things this team has done, but he didn’t bring up any football,” Barnes said. “The first thing he told his team when he got in there was scripture. He kind of turned [it] into a sermon. He’s the same person y’all see on TV. It’s not an act. His foundation is his faith.”

Swinney’s words really hit home for Barnes. It was an emotional reminder of the connection between his coach and his teammates.

“If anyone is ready to quit they didn’t really care about what they were doing before. It was a good reset,” he said. “It’s not even that much frustration. Coach Swinney put out his heart.”

Barnes emphasized that Swinney carries the weight of the program, even though the responsibility lies with the players.

“He’s feeling it from all of that, he’s feeling it from the community,” Barnes said. “But it’s not him. We got to genuinely go do it. We got to go execute.”