Trevor Lawrence after being named starter: 'We've still got the same task'
Trevor Lawrence on Wednesday was officially named the Jacksonville Jaguars’ Week 1 starting quarterback by head coach Urban Meyer. Though the move may provide a little clarity, which Lawrence noted in his subsequent press conference, his goals and preparation remains the same, he said.
“It was good,” Lawrence said, when asked how it feels to be named the starter. “We talked about our QB room, and we just have a great group, so I’m really excited for the opportunity. It doesn’t really change anything, though. We’ve still got the same task in front of us. [We’ve] got to get a lot better — individually, as a team [and] as an offense.
“Just looking forward to going to work this week. It brings some clarity, which is nice going forward, but it really doesn’t change much.”
Lawrence was asked whether there was a reaction of sorts from the rest of the team, but he said the announcement was kept mostly in the quarterback room.
He sang high praise for Jaguars former starter-turned-backup Gardner Minshew, a sixth-round pick out of Washington State, for helping him through the process.
“[Mishew] has been awesome,” Lawrence said. “Treating me really well. We’ve had a lot of conversations. He’s been a guy that I’ve been able to learn from.”
Through two preseason games, Lawrence has held a completion percentage just north of 62.5, throwing for 184 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions, while being sacked three times.
Lawrence was selected first overall by the Jaguars after a prolific three-year career at Clemson, which included one national championship victory and one finish as runner-up.
He led the Tigers to a national championship as a true freshman in 2018 after throwing for over 3,000 yards and 30 touchdowns, enough to earn him freshman All-America honors and the ACC Rookie of the Year award. Although Clemson fell to Alabama in the national championship game his sophomore year, Lawrence continued to show strides in 2019, throwing for over 3,600 yards and a career-high 36 touchdowns. He became the second Heisman Trophy finalist in program history in 2020 following another excellent campaign; this time, Lawrence finished an abbreviated 2020 season with an average of 315.3 passing yards per game, breaking a program record of 306.2, previously set by Deshaun Watson mark in 2016.
Lawrence declared for the NFL Draft as one of college football’s most decorated quarterbacks in recent memory. He finished his career with a 34-2 overall record, making him the winningest starting quarterback in Clemson history; his .944 win percentage is the the third-best by a starting quarterback at any school since Division I split in 1978.