CHARLOTTE —It’s no secret that last season was a frustrating one for Clemson’s offense.
Tony Elliott was often criticized and questioned, as well as his now-former quarterback.
But there were lessons to take away, and if you ask Virginia’s head coach, he and DJ Uiagalelei will be better because of the adversity they faced.
At the ACC’s annual football media kickoff Thursday at The Westin Charlotte, The Clemson Insider asked Elliott what he learned from the ups-and-downs that Uiagalelei experienced in his final season as Clemson’s offensive coordinator.
“One thing that I’ve learned is that adversity is the companion of a champion and the enemy to the weak,” Elliott said Thursday. “Adversity is necessary for you to grow. It was good to see DJ battle through all of that and now he’s a better person because of it, which is going to make him a better player in the long run.
“Just having that wealth of experience and also being able to point to the success and everybody talks about DJ, but Trevor (Lawrence) had a season or so a couple of games where he was struggling…but on the other side, he came out and he became a better player.”
Elliott believes that while adversity is necessary to your growth, it doesn’t mean you have to like it. He knows that there’s gonna be adversity this season for all his players, including Brennan Armstrong, as well as himself.
“Programs are truly defined on how they respond to adversity,” he said. “Do you fold or do you come out fighting and become better on the other side?”
Photo credit: Jim Dedmon/USA Today Sports
