No Illusions at Quarterback

D.J. Uiagalelei has not lived up to the preseason hype. That much is obvious.

A favorite to win the Heisman Trophy before the 2021 season started, he has struggled to find the magic that saw him complete 78-of-117 passes for 914 yards with five touchdowns and no interceptions in 235 snaps over 10 games (two starts), while also adding four rushing touchdowns amid his 28 carries for 60 yards. His 146.4 pass efficiency rating was fifth-best by an ACC freshman quarterback since 2002 (min. 100 passes), trailing only Clemson’s Deshaun Watson (188.6 in 2014), Florida State’s Jameis Winston (184.8 in 2013), North Carolina’s Sam Howell (160.2 in 2019) and Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence (157.6 in 2018).

2021 has not been as easy for him.

This season he ranks 97th in yards per game, 99th in completion percentage and 107 in pass efficiency. However, at least according to head coach Dabo Swinney, while he has been far from perfect, it is not 100% his fault.

"It's not all on D.J. He has missed his share. We are not trying to create the illusion that he's up for the Davey O'Brien award," Swinney said. "We haven't been consistent enough around him either ... anyway. The good news is where we struggled early running the ball, we have turned the corner there. And that has created some opportunities in the passing game. And no, it's not what I have seen in practice. We just haven't carried it to the game day yet. Some of that is continuity. D.J. has had three different centers. That has affected him some. But he'll be just fine."

"D.J. gets it. He's very self-aware. I promise you, he cares a bunch. He's got to get better and we all have to get better. He's going to have a lot more good days than bad days," Swinney added.

In the Tigers' loss to Pittsburgh last Saturday, Uiagalelei forced the coaching staffs' hand. After his second pick-six of the season, the Tiger coaching staff made a change at quarterback. However, even though he was benched, and is now in a battle to keep his starting job, he has shown his true colors.

"He's been great. He hasn't pouted one second," Swinney said. "When he went back in the other night, we went right down the field and scored. We didn't get the ball back at the end. I was proud of how he responded."

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