Instead of Making Excuses, Clemson QB DJ Uiagalelei Putting Head Down, Going to Work
CHARLOTTE, N.C.- Entering his second season as the starting quarterback at Clemson, DJ Uiagalelei knows he has to play better.
The junior signal caller was consistently inconsistent during his first season as the Tigers' full-time starting quarterback and when asked what led to some of the struggles he experienced on the field, Uiagalelei said there wasn't any one reason.
"I think it was the combined stuff," Uiagalelei said at the ACC Kickoff. "I definitely didn't play at the level I wanted to. Turnovers, completion percentage, those types of things. Even though we won 10 games last year it was a down year supposedly, people say. But we also had a great team that had a great year. We won six games straight, so we finished out really well."
Uiagalelei dealt with multiple injuries in 2021 including a sprained knee and an injury to the index finger on his throwing hand. However, rather than point to those things as reasons for his struggles, the quarterback chooses to keep looking forward and doing what he can to ensure those issues are behind him.
"No one wants to hear someone complain about something to complain. Whine, make excuses for something," Uiagalelei said. "So for me, I always want to put my head down and work. Just keep coming out there, keep putting my best effort forward and just working."
Uiagalelei completed just 56% of his passes last season and threw more interceptions (10) than touchdowns (9). It was not the season that many were expecting from the top quarterback in the 2020 recruiting class.
The struggles on the field led to harsh criticism from some inside the fan base. Rather than letting the outside noise distract him, Uiagalelei uses it as motivation.
"You have a fire that fuels you but you also have external stuff that can add fuel to that fire," he said. "But that can't be your fire. That fire has to come from between yourself, it has to come from you and why you play the game."
With the 2022 season quickly approaching, Uiagalelei is mostly focused on tuning out any negativity, and letting his play on the field start doing his talking for him.
"For the most part, I wanna be DJ. I want to go out there and play my game and everybody to know who DJ is."
The Tigers, who went 10-3 in 2021 and finished 14th in the final Associated Press Poll, are the fourth team on FanDuel Sportsbook's list to win it all in 2022.
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