Dabo Swinney’s Update On D.J. Uiagalelei In Spring Ball Makes It Sound Like Clemson Is Back

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  • Clemson is currently in the middle of spring practice and it sounds like the Tigers are on their way to a bounce-back season.
  • Whether D.J. Uiagalelei or Cade Klubnik wins the quarterback job, the coaching staff has been impressed.
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The Clemson Tigers did not make the College Football Playoff for the first time in six years last season. As a result, the cries that Dabo Swinney’s dynasty in South Carolina had come to an end.

And yet, Clemson still finished with 10 wins. It’s not time to rule out the Tigers just yet, especially after the most recent update from spring practice.

D.J. Uiagalelei struggled in 2021. He threw more interceptions and touchdowns.

However, he is down a lot of weight and is poised to turn it around from a year ago. Uiagalelei is currently battling it out with five-star Class of 2022 recruit Cade Klubnik for the starting job in spring ball.

Both guys are getting a lot of reps, and the Tigers are throwing the freshman into the fire.

“So that’s something that will always improve in a player, especially the more he gets reps,” offensive coordinator Brandon Streeter said. “So we overloaded him a lot with reps, which is what he needs. He needs a ton of reps so that he can go make mistakes, and then we can go and learn from it. And he’s done a really, really good job and that’s what stood out to us.”

The Clemson coaching staff has been impressed with what they have seen from Klubnik.

“Just growing in his confidence. The game is slowing down a little bit,” Swinney said. “He made some big plays, some nice throw and is a very accurate guy. He has a great presence to him.”

While the first-year quarterback has been impressive, it sounds like Uiagalelei is leading the charge. He had a great performance in the Tigers’ first scrimmage of the year and Swinney was excited about what he saw.

“Outstanding,” said Swinney of his veteran quarterback. “He had another really, really good day. Really proud of him. Made some big plays. Managed the game. Took care of the ball. Good decisions. Very accurate. That’s kind of what we’ve seen every day.”

As for who will get the job, there is a lot of time left to figure things out.

“It’s got to be the right fit, who fits us, fits our program and our locker room,” Swinney said. “And not just a guy, but somebody that’s an all-conference, multiyear starter type of guy that’s a veteran.”

Based on how things seem to be shaping up, it looks like it is Uiagalelei’s job to lose. Either way, the Clemson dynasty doesn’t appear to be dead yet.