DJ Uiagalelei had his worst game of the season on Saturday against Syracuse, throwing two interceptions – matching the total number of picks he had in Clemson’s first seven games – as part of a three-turnover day that also included a scoop and score for the Orange.
But despite the junior quarterback’s struggles and subsequent benching in favor of true freshman signal-caller Cade Klubnik, Dabo Swinney backed Uiagalelei following the game, saying he remains the Tigers’ starter and the team’s leader.
Uiagalelei appreciates Clemson’s head coach for having his back and gave a shoutout after the game to Klubnik, who rallied the No. 5 Tigers (8-0, 6-0 ACC) to a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns in their comeback 27-21 victory over the 14th-ranked Orange (6-1, 3-1) at Death Valley.
“I appreciate Coach Swinney for saying that,” Uiagalelei said. “That’s the type of coach you want to play for right there. Cade came in and played amazing. I mean, he picked us up. He won that football game for us today, along with the offensive line, the running backs. Shoutout to 2, man. Without him… He did an unbelievable job today – did an unbelievable job managing the game and going out there and just trusting himself and playing. So, I’m super proud of Cade today, and I appreciate Coach Swinney for saying that.”
Uiagalelei went 13-of-21 passing for 138 yards with the two interceptions, while also losing a fumble that was returned 90 yards for a touchdown, giving the Orange a 14-7 lead with around nine minutes left in the second quarter before they eventually went up by as many as 14 points toward the end of the first half.
“It was a bad day,” he said. “It was the mistakes I made out there I wish I had back – the picks, the fumble. Just unfortunate stuff that didn’t go my way. Sometimes it’s how it is. But it’s definitely something that you can learn from. I’ll make sure that doesn’t happen again.”
Klubnik replaced Uiagalelei on Clemson’s fourth possession of the third quarter, following Uiagalelei’s second pick of the game on an inaccurate throw one possession prior, and Klubnik finished 2-of-4 passing for 19 yards with six carries for 15 yards.
Uiagalelei understands Swinney’s decision to pull him from the game.
“Honestly, he was just telling me we’ve got to make a change, we’ve got to get some momentum going,” Uiagalelei said of Swinney. “Honestly, that’s the way football is, man – and as a head coach, I totally understand why he does it. For me, if I was put in his spot, I would’ve done the same thing. You’ve got to get a spark. When your quarterback’s not playing good and not playing up to par, especially how I’ve been playing and I feel like I should’ve played, then you’ve got to be able to make a change like that.”
Klubnik provided an instant spark on offense. With the Tigers trailing 21-10 at the time he came in with around five minutes left in the third quarter, the former five-star prospect ignited the offense and led a 15-play, 80-yard drive ending in a 1-yard touchdown run by Phil Mafah that cut the deficit to 21-16.
On Clemson’s next possession, following an 11-yard run by Klubnik, Will Shipley ran for a go-ahead 50-yard score, and Klubnik’s successful two-point conversion pass to Joseph Ngata put the Tigers ahead 24-21 with 11:26 to play in the game. Two drives later, they added a field goal that made for the final six-point margin of victory.
Uiagalelei, who entered Saturday’s game with 17 touchdown passes and only two picks, said he is less concerned with his own individual numbers and more focused on the fact the Tigers came away with the win.
“At the end of the day, for me, stats isn’t everything,” Uiagalelei explained. “My main number one stat is to win or lose, and today we got a W by Cade going out there and getting a W, and that’s Coach Swinney’s number one job. We have 135 guys on this team, and at the end of the day, his responsibility is the team, not me. And for Coach Swinney to go out there and make that decision, that’s the number one decision to make. I appreciate Cade for going out there and getting the W. I appreciate Coach Swinney for making that change, and I appreciate everyone on the ream for rallying and getting this W.”
While Uiagalelei is certainly disappointed in his performance, he intends to get better from it.
“I’m definitely frustrated. I wish I would’ve played better,” he said. “I think that’s the biggest thing, man. You put in all the work during the week and expect to go out there and play great, and sometimes it just doesn’t happen, and that was today. But I’ll be able to go to the drawing board, look at this game and learn from it and make sure it doesn’t happen again.”
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