Following what was quarterback DJ Uiagalelei’s worst performance of the season versus Syracuse, it seems Clemson’s bye week could not have come at a better time. For Uiagalelei, it was a time to take a step back from football, reset and be reminded of where it all started.
“I got to go home — I haven’t been home in a while,” Uiagalelei said. “I got to see my mom, my brother, my pops and family members, so it’s always good to be able to go home and get to see family like that, so it was good for me.”
A taste of home was just what the California native needed to re-evaluate and look ahead to the grind in store for the rest of the season — a much-needed mental reset following Uiagalelei’s first real hiccup this season against Syracuse.
“Trying to take time away from just football a little bit and just be able to relax, reset and be able to come into these next few weeks of the season and beyond that,” the quarterback said. “I think it’s more of a week just to relax and reset your mind. Sometimes football’s a grind. Coach [Dabo] Swinney said we’ve been going for 12, 13 weeks counting fall camp, and I mean that’s 12, 13 weeks straight of just preparation, preparation, preparation. I think the biggest thing is just to reset your mind, understand where you’re at in life and taking in everything going on and then reset coming into this week and get back onto the grind.”
Taking time away was also a big reminder for Uiagalelei of just how far he has come since last season — something no bout of adversity could take away from him.
“I’ve improved on just giving guys a chance with the football, being able to touch the ball every time I’ve thrown it. I feel like I’ve done a better job with that,” Uiagalelei said. “I’ve done a better job of running the ball with more passion, just getting more downhill, getting extra yards and continuing to keep fighting. I feel like I’ve done a better job leading. Leadership has been a big thing I feel I’ve done a better job at.”
Now with a week of rest under his belt, Uiagalelei is looking ahead to the Tigers’ road game finale in South Bend this weekend.
With two weeks of rest and preparation, the second-year starter is looking forward to playing in such a historic venue at Notre Dame and is taking all the adjustments he has made since Syracuse to bring a much more polished performance against a talented Fighting Irish team.
“I think you get a lot more time to prepare for an opponent, that’s the biggest thing,” the veteran said. “You get two weeks to look at an opponent and get to see what all they are doing, so you have a lot more time to do that. A lot of time during the bye week, you work on a lot of stuff that you feel like you need to improve on during the season and what you’ve seen so far from us through the first eight games. Just to continue to keep working and be able to get bodies healthy, people healthy… I think that’s another big thing for the bye week.”
Uiagalelei and his teammates travel to South Bend this weekend for their final regular season road game of the season at Notre Dame with hopes of coming away with another win and taking another step towards a College Football Playoff appearance. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. on NBC.
