CLEMSON | For a while now we've been saying that the what-if snake bites both ways, that every missed play you can think of in a narrow loss has a counter in the form of a made play in a narrow win.

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At this point there's little doubt that the defense's ability to buckle down in the shadow of its own end zone has been the chief ingredient in Clemson sitting here at 6-3 instead of 3-6 or maybe worse.

Twenty-two times this season, opposing offenses have reached the red zone. And 16 times they have walked away without a touchdown, making Clemson's red-zone touchdown yield of 27.2 percent second nationally in the FBS.

The only team better is Georgia (25 percent), whose defense has been all-time great so far.