How good can DJ Uiagalelei be for Clemson this season? ‘Expectations are sky high’
The Trevor Lawrence era is over at Clemson. Come Sept. 4 when the Tigers match up with the Georgia Bulldogs, sophomore D.J. Uiagalelei will be the starting quarterback.
ACC analysts Roddy Jones, Eric Mac Lain and EJ Manuel are all former ACC players and gave their thoughts to The State on Uiagalelei and the season ahead. The QB received some of the media’s votes for preseason conference player of the year along with Clemson defensive end Bryan Bresee.
Uiagalelei last year threw for 342 and 439 yards in his two starts. He had 914 all season to go with five touchdowns passing and four scores rushing.
NOTE: Some answers have been edited for clarity and length.
What are your expectations for DJ Uiagalelei?
Roddy Jones, ACC Network analyst and former Georgia Tech running back: “I think the expectations are sky high. I mean, the dude threw for more yards against Notre Dame than anybody has done ever. That’s going to follow him in a way that is going to create a lot of expectations.
The thing about guys like D.J., No. 1, great family and background. No. 2, he’s been in that spot like forever, it seems like, so I think he’s going to be able to handle it. In terms of the lineage, I had a chance to talk to him about it, and that’s why he chose Clemson. You want to follow in the footsteps of Deshaun (Watson) and Trevor and Tajh Boyd before them. You want to follow that and be the guy at a school like that, so as much as anybody, I think he’s ready for it. That program does such a great job of preparing their guys for the moment. That’s why you come to Clemson.”
Eric Mac Lain, ACC Network analyst and former Clemson offensive lineman: “The craziest thing that I heard was that, again, coach (Dabo) Swinney mentioned Deshaun Watson. He mentioned Kelly Bryant, Tajh Boyd, Trevor Lawrence and said, ‘DJ has more arm talent than all of them,’ and it blows my mind to hear that. I’ve obviously seen it in a small sample size, but he has all of the tools. He has that ‘it’ factor. He wants to be great. I don’t think there’s anybody that’s going to take that away from him.”
EJ Manuel, ACC Network analyst and former Florida State quarterback: “Even back to Tajh Boyd, I grew up with Tajh in Virginia Beach. I’ve known him since seventh grade, so I know the fabric of what those (Clemson) quarterbacks are about. The quarterback room, they’re very proud of what they’ve built there at Clemson as we were at Florida State when we had our slew of guys. I think for DJ, obviously, just be himself …
Filling in the shoes of a Trevor Lawrence, it’s hard for most guys, but when you’re 6-6, 6-5, 250 (pounds), the No. 1 quarterback in the country, you should be all right, so I think it’ll be fun.”
This story was originally published July 28, 2021 at 6:00 AM with the headline "How good can DJ Uiagalelei be for Clemson this season? ‘Expectations are sky high’."
