There was never a doubt in Clemson football head coach Dabo Swinney's mind when asked if freshman quarterback DJ Uiagalelei would start against the North Carolina Tar Heels in this Saturday's Atlantic Coast Conference championship game after a loss to South Carolina.
“(DJ Uiagalelei) is still the starter,” Sweeney said in a Sunday conference. “He's a long way away from being the reason we lost that game.
“He doesn't return kicks, play safety and catch the ball. He can only control his part. All of those things affect your rhythm and psyche in the game.”
DJ Uiagalelei threw for a near-career low 27.6% completion percentage on 29 attempts in a one-point loss to South Carolina, a performance Swinney said was a combination of a multitude of Clemson miscues from both sides of the football.
“It was a combination of a lot of things,” Swinney said. “We had one time early where we had (tight end Jake Briningstool) wide open and we get hit. We did not do a good job of protecting on that particular play.
“Another time, we missed (freshman wide receiver) Antonio Williams wide open. Then we hit him and dropped it. We had a couple more that we just dropped. We had some critical drops and some missed plays. Those things add up. It's a recipe for getting beat.”
Dabo Swinney gave a heartfelt message to his senior players the day before, saying his heart broke for the seniors who played their last regular season game with the program.
“One thing I'll say about our guys: They never quit and they fight until the end,” Swinney said in a Saturday conference. “I appreciate their efforts. This is a tough moment, I hate it for our fans, and it's been a long time since we've had this feeling, but that's where we are today. We have to get back to work on Monday and see if we can win this league.”
Follow Us
Subscribe