Tigers Today: Commanding D.J. Uiagalelei stars in final Clemson scrimmage

by:Pete Nakos•08/20/21•

PeteNakos_

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Dabo Swinney was not disappointed with D.J. Uiagalelei’s performance on Saturday. But the Clemson coach saw room for improvement in the first scrimmage of Tigers camp.

The sophomore quarterback made a few questionable decisions, and Swinney pointed out how he could improve on some technical parts of his game.

In the final scrimmage of fall camp on Thursday, Uiagalelei showed why he is Clemson’s starting quarterback and one of the best QBs in the nation. Swinney walked away impressed, enough so to give a glowing review to the media.

“Well, he hasn’t really had a bad day,” Swinney said. “I just thought this was his best day as far as just putting it all together. Now, some of that was because of other people. Little cleaner up front. But just command of everything that he’s doing. Fundamentally, I thought he was his best today. Made the right decisions, made some critical plays at critical times. [He] should have had a couple more that we dropped [that he] put right on the money.

“But just very clean. Clean with his exchanges. Clean with his footwork. Made all the calls right and made good decisions.”

The improvements are not a surprise. Uiagalelei is in the mix to win the Heisman Trophy this season. And the former five-star prospect is expected to lead the Tigers back to the College Football Playoff.

But on Thursday, he reminded Dabo Swinney and the rest of the Tigers why he is the quarterback for Clemson.

Clemson standout signs with New York Knicks

The New York Knicks have agreed to terms with former Clemson forward Aamir Simms.

The second-team All-ACC selection averaged 13.4 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game last year, leading Clemson to a fifth-place finish in the ACC. He graduated this spring.

The 6-foot-8, 245-pound forward made the most of his time with the Knicks in the NBA’s Summer League in Las Vegas. In four games he averaged 3.8 points with 2.8 rebounds across 11.1 minutes.

Tigers men’s basketball announces nonconference schedule

Clemson announced its nonconference slate for the upcoming season on Thursday. The schedule is highlighted by six home games, including a visit from South Carolina.

Clemson hosts this year’s game against South Carolina on Dec. 18. The Tigers have won three-of-the-last-four matchups with the Gamecocks dating back to the 2016-17 season.

The ACC schedule has yet to be announced, but the Tigers know their opponents.

(Bold denotes home game in Littlejohn Coliseum)

Nov. 1 Georgia SW State (Exhibition)
Nov. 9 Presbyterian
Nov. 12 Wofford
Nov. 15 Bryant
Nov. 18 vs. Temple (Charleston Classic) – Charleston
Nov. 19 vs. TBA (Charleston Classic) – Charleston
Nov. 21. vs. TBA (Charleston Classic) – Charleston
Nov. 26 Charleston Southern
Nov. 30 at Rutgers (ACC/Big Ten Challenge) – Piscataway, N.J.
Dec. 11 vs. Drake (Holiday Hoopsgiving) – Atlanta, Ga.
Dec. 14 Miami (Oh.)
Dec. 18 South Carolina

ACC finalizes COVID-19 forfeiture rules for 2021 season

On Thursday, the ACC formally announced a COVID-19 forfeiture policy for the upcoming season.

“If a 2021 ACC game cannot be played on its originally scheduled date by a team unable to play due to an insufficient number of available players related to COVID-19, that team shall be deemed to have forfeited, with a loss assigned to the team unable to play and a win assigned to its scheduled opponent, with both the loss and win, respectively, applied to the conference standings,” the conference said in a statement.

Additionally, should both teams be unable to field a team due to COVID-19 issues, they will both have to forfeit and both will earn a loss.

Georgia dealing with several injuries ahead of Clemson showdown

In less than three weeks, Clemson and Georgia will face off in Charlotte, North Carolina. Many are stoked for what could be the best college football game of the season. However, the injury bug has made its way to Athens.

ClemsonSports.com reporter Adam Luckett broke down the injuries Georgia is facing and what that means for Clemson.

Counting down

Clemson vs. Georgia (season opener): 15 days
Clemson at South Carolina: 99 days