Uiagalelei sees a new QB for 2022, thankful that teammates have his back |
CLEMSON – Clemson’s
DJ Uiagalelei walked into Wednesday’s media session with a smile, and his demeanor was one of a relaxed and confident quarterback.
Uiagalelei will start next Monday’s season opener against Georgia Tech knowing that he has to go out and show the world that last year was an anomaly and he’s prepared to put his best foot forward. “I feel really good, mentally I feel really good,” Uiagalelei said. “I feel like my head is in a good spot right now. My body-- I feel 100% healthy. I feel ready to go. I'm excited to come into this game, it's an exciting beginning to the season. It's been a long offseason of playing against the same opponent. It's exciting to go against a new opponent in Georgia Tech. Just coming into the season-- I'm just excited for game one. All the hard work I put in over the offseason, I'm excited to go out and display it.” Uiagalelei said he was watched a lot of film from last season to correct all of the things that went wrong. “There's definitely a lot of mistakes where I wish I could've done better and fundamental wise just different plays in the game, decision making, going back on it,” he said. “It's always good to watch and see the different mistakes but also see the stuff you did well in the game. There's a lot of stuff I thought I did good, there's also a lot of stuff I messed up on.” Defensive end KJ Henry says that Uiagalelei was unfairly blamed for all of last seasons ills, but he never complained. Henry says all of the players in the locker room noticed how Uiagalelei composed himself. “It wasn’t all on him,” Henry said. “And the thing is, the locker room knows that. A lot of the fans don’t. He’s done a great job of taking (the criticism) on the chest. That’s the leader you want to see in a quarterback…I think that’s probably the No. 1 thing is, he’s gonna take the bullet for us as a team, especially the offense, but it’s not always him.” Center Will Putnam said no one on the team ever blamed Uiagalelei for the offensive struggles. “First and foremost, it’s just a part of the quarterback position,” Putnam said. “If something goes wrong, they’re gonna get all the blame. If something goes right, they’re gonna get all the glory. I mean, us as a team, we never blamed him for anything. Because as a team, everyone has to take ownership and accountability for all our successes and all of our failures. It has to be unconditional. “And some of it, it’s not fair. It’s not fair to DJ. Like passes, for example, it’s not always on the quarterback. It can be on the wide receiver running the wrong route. It can be on us up front for not having the best protection that we could’ve had. And then sometimes, he just might make a mistake, which we all mistakes.” Uiagalelei said he looks in the mirror and sees a different quarterback than the one who played last season. “I think I see a totally different guy, a guy that's a lot better from the last game vs. Georgia Tech,” he said. “Someone that's gone through it and someone that's gotten a lot better throughout the offseason and all the hard work put in.” Putnam said all of the players are pulling for Uiagalelei to have a breakout season. “We love him and we want to do well,” Putnam said. “And, I think it’s also another thing up front that we’ve kind of taken as a challenge upon ourselves, is to do what we can to put him in the best opportunity for him to make the most plays.” That type of support means everything to Uiagalelei. “I’m unbelievably thankful for all the teammates and especially Coach Swinney, who stood behind my back, stood behind me and supported me through it all,” Uiagalelei said. “I appreciate them, man. I just appreciate them for all they’ve done sticking up for me and representing me. I appreciate that a lot. It means a lot to me.” Uiagalelei said that type of unity will lead to a successful 2022 season. “Everyone on this whole team, not just offense, defense (too), we've all put in the work over the summer and spring. We've all tried to get better, and we've definitely gotten better on the offensive side of the ball,” he said. “I think when you're talking about from a year ago, I thought we were in a really good place a year ago, and then I look back now it's totally different-- it's a totally different thing. I think, ‘wow, I thought last year was good?’ We were in a good spot mentally and physically, but I think this year it's in a totally upward direction, and it's even better than last year. A lot comes with the maturity of the team.” #Clemson running back Will Shipley on the team having their starting QB DJ Uiagalelei’s back: “I want to see him succeed, because if anyone deserves it — he does.” pic.twitter.com/06HashVTO3
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