Clemson OC defends DJ Uiagalelei after struggles against Gamecocks

Clemson quarterback DJ Uiagalelei played one of the worst games of his career Saturday afternoon against rival South Carolina.

The junior completed only 8 of his 29 pass attempts for 99 yards, as the Gamecocks stunned their rival, ending Clemson’s 40-game home winning streak.

The 27.6 percent completion percentage for Uiagalelei is the worst of his career. The 99 passing yards is tied for a career low, matching last year’s game against the Gamecocks.

“They just played a lot of man the whole night. DBs played good, safeties played good. I had some missed opportunities — routes I should’ve hit and a couple of passes I should’ve made,” Uiagalelei said. “It definitely sucks.”

Despite Uiagalelei’s struggles, Clemson never made a quarterback change against the Gamecocks.

Uiagalelei took every snap, while five-star freshman Cade Klubnik remained on the bench throughout.

Klubnik came in for Uiagalelei earlier in the year at Notre Dame when he was struggling, but Clemson stuck with the veteran on Saturday.

Tigers offensive coordinator Brandon Streeter said afterwards that there was no thought of putting Klubnik in.

“DJ’s been our leader. He’s been (the) guy,” Streeter said. “I mean, hey, there was a lot of drops tonight. That ain’t freaking DJ’s fault. There’s other people on the field. It’s not just DJ. DJ ran his ass off tonight.”

To Streeter’s point, Uiagalelei rushed for 51 yards and a touchdown, picking up some crucial yards along the way.

But eventually South Carolina stacked the box, daring Clemson to throw. The Tigers were unable to do so successfully.

“They played a ton of man coverage and they just did better than we did as far as playing man coverage,” Streeter said. “We didn’t win in man, we didn’t make the plays we needed to make in man coverage. We ran the ball well, I just felt like we didn’t play good enough at all in the passing game. That’s really what made us struggle tonight.”

As for the plan at the quarterback position moving forward, Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said “we’re not getting into any of that.”

It will certainly be worth monitoring this week as Clemson prepares to face North Carolina in the ACC championship game.