CLEMSON -- The week was spent trying to chase away the smell of burnt toast, and trying to figure out a way this defense could be better.

Maybe help was on the way from guys who'd been injured?

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As it turned out, a couple of the same dudes who were the object of ridicule at Wake Forest were the ones on the field for much of this game.

After Andrew Mukuba's first-half ejection for targeting, Nate Wiggins and Toriano Pride went the distance at corner. And they were joined in the secondary by freshman Sherrod Covil, who replaced injured R.J. Mickens in the second half.

Hey, maybe Wake Forest's offense was pretty good.

And hey, maybe Wes Goodwin's guys are made of stronger stuff than was believed when they gave up all those points and yards a week ago.

Defense was the story of this Top 10 matchup as the Tigers smothered N.C. State in a 30-20 victory that improved Clemson's record to 5-0 while atoning for last year's nightmare in Raleigh.

After some lapses early in the first half, Goodwin's defense buckled down and controlled things. And that was built on the guys up front controlling the line of scrimmage.

The defensive line was still missing Xavier Thomas. And it was missing Bryan Bresee after he was hospitalized this week with a kidney infection.

But the available linemen were more than enough to overwhelm the Wolfpack, who totaled 279 yards and rushed for just 34 on 21 carries.

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The Tigers' offense wasn't perfect, but it did what it had to do against a high-level defense. DJ Uiagalelei led a sizzling two-minute touchdown drive to put Clemson into the half up 13-10, and a beautiful touchdown throw to Jake Briningstool created a double-digit lead early in the third quarter.

Uiagalelei finished off the Wolfpack with three minutes left, carrying out a deft fake and sprinting 9 yards for a touchdown that made it 30-13.

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Uiagalelei threw for 209 yards on a 21-of-30 clip while rushing for a team-high 73 yards and two scores on 14 carries.

Through five games, Uiagalelei has 11 touchdown passes and one interception with 242 rushing yards.

Through five games last season he had three touchdown passes, three interceptions and 160 rushing yards.

Will Shipley had 60 rushing yards on 14 carries and three catches for 37 yards, including a brilliant grab of a perfect Uiagalelei throw on that two-minute drive at the end of the first half.

The connection gained 26 yards and put the ball on the 1-yard line. Uiagalelei took it in himself, and the drive provided a calming effect after an uneven and uneasy first half.

Clemson had 354 yards and 145 on the ground, totaling 20 first downs and holding the ball for 33:20. The Tigers didn't have a turnover for the second consecutive game.

N.C. State took its first possession of the game 78 yards on 15 plays for a field goal, and its third possession produced 75 yards and a touchdown.

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That's when it felt like the Tigers' defense was hanging on by a thread.

That's when it felt like this night could be like that agonizing afternoon in Winston-Salem.

But from that point, the Pack totaled 39 yards on their next six drives.

From that point, this defense started to look like the one that everyone spent the offseason talking about.

And still short-handed, at that.

The smell of dominant defense sure beat the smell of burnt toast.

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