K'Von Wallace's gift of, uh, colorful oration was apparent to all who were privy to the hot mic as the team gathered on the field before the Fiesta Bowl.

Wallace did more than talk big, though. He backed it up and established himself as one of the major figures of a defense that upheld the standard despite major personnel losses from 2018.

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There wasn't great celebration when Wallace, Isaiah Simmons and Tanner Muse opted to return to school for 2019. But in hindsight it's abundantly clear there's no way that team gets back to the national championship game without that development. Heck, maybe Clemson loses two regular-season games if those three don't come back.