DJ Uiagalelei passes Accountability 101 in postgame interviews

Uiagalelei stretches for yards against Georgia.

by David Hood - Senior Writer - Sun Sep 05 13:00:07 GMT-04:00 2021

CHARLOTTE, NC – Chalk up Saturday night’s loss to Georgia as a learning experience for quarterback DJ Uiagalelei, and while he didn’t play as well as he would have liked, he did pass Accountability 101 when speaking with the media after the game.

Uiagalelei was 19-of-37 for 178 yards and one interception on the night, and the quarterback run was never a threat to the Georgia defense. He said that Georgia threw a lot of different looks his way and took responsibility for much of the offensive woes.

"They ran a lot of different coverages, mixed coverages,” Uiagalelei said. “A lot of two-high, one-high and different stuff out of that. For the most part, I just have to make the throws. I didn't play very well today and everyone could see that and it showed. I make those throws, and it's a different ball game."

Asked if he wasn’t trusting his first read, he simply reiterated that he has to play better.

"Not really. It's on me. I didn't play well at all,” Uiagalelei said. “I played well as it went on, but I didn't start off playing well. I have to play well from the beginning. It's as clear as that. I felt confident in the game plan. I just have to go out and execute. I didn't execute or make the throws when I needed to. Took a couple of sacks when I should have thrown the ball away."

He then said that he didn’t take advantage of his opportunities to make plays with his legs, and he spent the rest of his interview session refusing to blame the play calling, his offensive line, or his receivers.

“I definitely think there were times I could have left the pocket and made a play with my feet. But I just didn't do it,” Uiagalelei said. “I didn't play very well. A bunch of times I could have scrambled and got some positive yards but took a sack. I made the offensive line look bad, but that was on me. The offensive line played great. The receivers played great. Running backs protected me well. The sacks were on me. I just have to get rid of the ball, simple as that."

Uiagalelei said that while the Georgia defense caused some confusion and led to some communication mix-ups with his receivers, he never felt flustered.

“No, I don't think I felt flustered. Just have to make the play,” he said. “Knew what the read was and didn't throw it and held onto it and ended up taking a couple of sacks."

Uiagalelei and wide receiver Justyn Ross weren’t on the same page on a few routes, but Uiagalelei that chemistry between the two is fine and once again took the blame.

“No, I didn't think the chemistry was off. I just missed throws. Sometimes Justyn was open and I missed the throw,” he said. “On the curl route, I missed him. I have to play better, simple as that. Coach Swinney said in these big games, the best players have to play well. I didn't play well today, simple as that. Got to get better. Simple as that."

What will he do now?

"Go back, watch film, learn from the mistakes,” Uiagalelei said. “Got to be able to grow. It's the beginning of the season."