At 12:30 in the morning on October 2 after Clemson’s narrow win over Boston College the few media members left in the press box beheld a rare sight.
When the stands were empty and the teams showered and went their separate ways, D.J. Uiagalelei stepped back onto the field. He wanted to correct some missed throws while the memories remained fresh on his mind.
“I just wanted to get it out of my system,” Uiagalelei said on Tuesday. “I knew there were throws that I missed, and I wanted to correct it and didn’t want to wait until the next day. I just wanted to fix it then and there while it was fresh on my mind.”
The quarterback completed 13-of-28 passes for 207 yards against the Eagles. But Uiagalelei felt he missed at least six throws in the game that he wanted to correct as soon as possible before the sun rose on a new day.
The sophomore likened his corrections to what happens after a quarterback misses a throw in practice.
“If you miss a throw in practice, you do it right after practice,” Uiagalelei said. It’s the same thing with a game, I had throws that I missed and wanted to really work on so after the game it was super fresh, and I could do it then and there.”
Say what you want, but this guy cares. Clemson QB D.J. Uiagalelei throwing passes to a manager after the Tigers’ win over BC Saturday night | #Clemson pic.twitter.com/7s4ebiqer0
— Will Vandervort (@steelerwill) October 3, 2021
The moment revealed something about Uiagalelei’s character and leadership qualities.
When everybody else focused on recovery, and rightfully so, the Clemson quarterback turned his focus to correction. Despite his struggles in the first half of the season Uiagalelei has not slacked off in his preparation or work ethic.
And that Saturday night was not the first time Uiagalelei practiced corrections right after a game.
“I’ve done it in high school and done it here before,” Uiagalelei said. “I think it’s just the first-time people have seen it.”
After an open date, Clemson turned its focus towards Syracuse. The Tigers travel to the Carier Dome on Friday night for a 7:00 p.m. kickoff.
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