Dabo Swinney explains decision to bench D.J. Uiagalelei
After Clemson’s loss to Pittsburgh on Saturday, head coach Dabo Swinney had a lot to address about his team’s performance. One of the big questions on everybody’s mind was what happened and why did he bench starting quarterback DJ Uiagalelei briefly in the third quarter.
“You know I just thought he had a couple of bad plays in a row. Right before the half, the ball probably should have been picked,” said Swinney. “It was not the right coverage to throw the ball over there. He kind of forced the ball. And then we come back (to start the third quarter) and throw a pick-six. I felt like I should give Taisun a chance, you know.”
Taisun Phommachanh took over for Uiagalelei after he opened the third quarter up with a pick-six on his shovel pass. Phommachanh took the Tigers down the field on his first possession for a field goal. But his second drive ended with a three and out after only picking up three yards.
Back to Uiagalelei
“I thought Taisun came in and did some good things. He led us down to a field goal. It’s a positive, but they ate the clock up and we couldn’t get the ball back,” Swinney said praising his sophomore quarterback. “And next thing you know it’s a couple of field golds can you get down a couple of scores and, now you gotta throw the ball. It felt like DJ would give us the best chance there.
“He’s had the most work and has shown in the two-minute situation to give us the best chance. So, we put him back in there and you’re right I thought he responded well, I really did. I felt, he could have sat over there and pouted, but he didn’t. He responded well and took us right down the field for a touchdown, and then you know it’s a 10-point game, with eight minutes to go.”
Swinney did to little to late
With Clemson able to hold the Pittsburgh offense to just two field goals on consecutive drives, there was mounting pressure for the Tigers with little time left on the clock. On the two following Panthers’ possessions, they ran off nearly six minutes of clock apiece. It was then that Swinney turned the ball back over to his starter, Uiagalelei. The sophomore was able to successfully lead the Tigers to a touchdown, making it a two-score game.
“I am proud of DJ of how he went in and responded on that drive and I’m just disappointed that we didn’t get a chance to get it back and see what he could do. At the end of the day just poor performance all the way around.”
Swinney is proud of how his young quarterback handled adversity. But as many Clemson fans would point out, it would have been better for the team to have not faced that adversity at all.
The Tigers’ chances at heading to the College Football Playoff and possibly winning the national championship have ended with this loss. But the year is not over for Clemson and how they finish will be noted by fans and outsiders alike.