In Clemson’s 30-20 win over the Florida State Seminoles in Memorial Stadium on Saturday, quarterback DJ Uiagalelei continued to lead his offense to yet another victory at home to keep the Tigers 32-game win streak in Death Valley alive.
Uiagalelei himself, while inconsistent at times, made strides in the right direction in Saturday’s matchup. The sophomore completed 19-of-31 passes for 189 yards, one interception, and one touchdown.
“It felt better,” the California-native said. “Yeah, I felt good. The ball’s coming out good, kind of just felt like a good game. I feel like I played a solid game, still got stuff to work on, but it was a solid game today.”
Offensive coordinator Tony Elliot echoed Uiagalelei’s improvement on the field. Elliot was pleased with his quarterback’s steps toward leadership and the way he has become more vocal, continuing to challenge his guys to be their very best.
“That was the main thing I tried to focus on,” Uiagalelei said. “Definitely thought I did a better job this week. Trying to be more vocal, man, trying to be encouraging. Just trying to be a leader and trying to get guys going any way I can, being positive and just be out there and be a voice for the offense.”
While it has been an emotional rollercoaster for the quarterback in his first starting tenure with the Tigers, Uiagalelei continues to fight for success with an unshakeable belief in himself and his teammates. A mindset that reminds him of why he even plays the game in the first place.
“Just keep fighting, man, have the unshakeable belief,” Uiagalelei said. “I mean, I gotta believe in myself a hundred percent, a hundred percent believe in this offense and this team, and we just gotta keep fighting. That was my main mindset. Just gotta go out there and keep swinging the hammer, just keep going and going and going. Just got to keep attacking, keep playing ball. We’ve played this game since we’ve been little kids, so we just gotta go out there and play like we’ve always played. We love the game of football for the game of football, so that’s my mindset.”
Clemson hits the road this weekend for another ACC matchup when the Tigers travel to Cardinal Stadium on Saturday, November 6, to face Louisville. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. on ACCN.
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