Uiagalelei Still Has Room to Grow

Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney said the Tigers' coaching staff is still trying put new starter D.J. Uiagalelei in as many challenging situations as possible in an effort to help the young quarterback to grow into his new role.

D.J. Uiagalelei is taking over as the starting quarterback at Clemson amidst a mountain of expectations.

In two starts last season, the rising sophomore certainly looked the part, but after the Tigers scrimmaged Friday in Death Valley head coach Dabo Swinney said that it is important to remember Uiagalelei has never been a full-time starter at the collegiate level yet.

"He's done a lot of good things but he's still, you know, you get reminded quickly," Swinney said. "He's not been the starter yet, outside of a couple of a couple of games. Still trying to put him in as many situations and expose him as much as we possibly can so that he can grow. We need him to grow." 

During the scrimmage in Death Valley on Friday Swinney said that there was some good and bad from the Tigers' new starting quarterback and that Uiagalelei still has some room to improve before Clemson opens the season in September.

"You know he made some mistakes today," Swinney said. "A couple of critical mistakes in the red zone that we can't make. Whether it be the right decision in the run game, or just protecting the football, you know, protect the ball. Situational awareness. Don't try to do too much, play within the system."

One area the young quarterback has excelled in during the spring is evolving into one of the leaders on the offensive side of the ball. Swinney noted that his efforts on the field and dedication to perfecting his craft has earned him the respect of the entire locker room.

"Everybody has unbelievable respect for D.J.," Swinney said. "I mean he earned that last year, last spring, last summer... last season. They all respect DJ tremendously."

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