No. 1 Clemson turns to Uiagalelei at QB
Clemson coach Dabo Swinney always planned for talented freshman quarterback DJ Uiagalelei to take over for Trevor Lawrence, just not this weekend against Boston College.
That’s the situation for the Tigers, however, after Lawrence tested positive for COVID-19. He is out against the Eagles (4-2, 3-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) and his status going forward against No. 4 Notre Dame on Nov. 7 is unclear since Lawrence must sit out at least 10 days.
So ready or not, Uiagalelei (oo- ee-AHN- ga-lehlay) gets the chance to show his skills as Clemson’s starter.
Uiagalelei was a highly rated passer — ranked the No. 2 overall college prospect by Rivals.com — and is expected to be the next standout Clemson quarterback. Swinney hopes Uiagalelei has the kind of success at Clemson that Deshaun Watson, now with the Houston Texans, and Lawrence is enjoying as the leading Heisman Trophy candidate and likely top pick in the 2021 NFL draft.
Uiagalelei, the 6-foot- 4, 250-pound freshman from Inland Empire in Southern California, enrolled in January and went through nine spring practices before the
coronavirus pandemic shut down all college athletic activities in March.
He’s shown a big arm and a power run game in five appearances, mostly after Lawrence and the Tigers (6- 0, 5- 0) have had games in hand.
“I just want to be mentally prepared and do my job,” Uiagalelei said earlier this month. “Just to get live bullets and get playing time. It’s just super cool.”
He’ll get plenty of playing time on Saturday, sooner than even he expected.
Uiagalelei had scholarship offers from a host of Top-25 teams including Alabama, Georgia, Ohio State and Oklahoma.
Another Heisman candidate in running back Travis Etiennne should help Uiag
alelei.
Etienne, the two-time reigning ACC player of the year, has 522 yards and eight touchdowns this season.
OHIO STATE FACES ITS BIGGEST TEST >> The potential Big Ten game of the year lost some luster last week.
No. 18 Penn State was upset by Indiana so instead of returning to Happy Valley to host No. 3 Ohio State with an unbeaten record, the Nittany Lions are trying to avoid going 0-2 for the first time since 2013. Ohio State-Penn State is the only matchup of ranked teams this weekend, which could be filled with blowouts near the top of the rankings.
The Nittany Lions lost to Indiana and they also lost another tailback from what was supposed to be a deep group, but hidden in all the mistakes last week against the Hoosiers was a really good defensive performance.
Edge rushers Shaka Toney and Jayson Oweh were tenacious. Can they disturb Justin Fields, who was near perfect last week for Ohio State?
It could be a path to victory for the Penn State because the Buckeyes’ running game was less-than-awesome last week in a blowout against Nebraska.
HAEN ER, RIVERS LEAD FRESNO STATE >> Jake Haener set career highs with 311 yards passing and three touchdowns, Ronnie Rivers tied his career best with three scores, and Fresno State scored 31 unanswered points in a 38-17 home victory over Colorado State (01) late Thursday night.
Rivers carried it 23 times for 95 yards and two touchdowns and he caught five passes for 69 yards and a score for Fresno State (1-1). HEISMAN WATCH >> Kyle Trask, QB, and Kyle Pitts, TE, Florida. Before a twoweek COVID-19 outbreak shutdown, the Kyles were ripping up SEC defnses for the 10th-ranked Gators (2-1). Trask has thrown 14 touchdowns, half to Pitts. The Gators get back in action at home in the Swamp against Missouri.