How Mark Fields became a key part of Clemson’s defense

When Clemson cornerback Marcus Edmond went down with a foot injury this past Saturday against Auburn, there was no panic on Clemson’s sideline.

That’s because the Tigers have developed great depth at cornerback, and the emergence of Mark Fields is a big part of that.

Fields played 41 snaps against Auburn, the third most out of the cornerbacks, and had a tackle for loss and a pass breakup. He helped Clemson’s defense hold Auburn to 79 passing yards.

Tigers coach Dabo Swinney said Fields, a junior, has made great strides from when he first arrived at Clemson.

“Mark Fields is a guy that really needed to grow up and mature and get serious about being a great player and just buy in to not just being a good athlete, a guy that can run fast, but a technician at his position. I am so proud of Mark Fields,” Swinney said. “He has had a great camp and he is unbelievably gifted. He has great talent. And now he’s kind of made that jump. He’s made that turn. This was a big night for him. His confidence and the way he’s playing right now, the sky is the limit for him.”

Clemson starting cornerback Ryan Carter, the leader of the defensive backs, said he can tell a difference between Fields on and off the field.

“He played a great game Saturday. It was good to see a guy like that flourish and do his thing. He’s definitely preparing a lot better as far as in the film room, taking a lot of notes, studying a lot more, little things,” Carter said. “Mark’s always had the talent. He’s got great talent, great feet, great technique. I think the biggest thing was just the little details a lot of people struggle with when they first go from high school to college.

“Now he’s taking his game to another level. It was great to see him do his thing on Saturday.”

This story was originally published September 13, 2017 at 11:32 AM with the headline "How Mark Fields became a key part of Clemson’s defense."