Clemson Football: Trevor Lawrence wins the approval of ESPN analyst

Clemson football QB Trevor Lawrence has an opportunity to leave the Tiger program as one of the best to ever put on the orange & white.

If you are a diehard Clemson fan, you may have already forgotten about Kelly Bryant. That is because QB Trevor Lawrence has provided more levels at the position and is the main reason why Bryant is now the starting signal-caller for some other Tigers – Missouri.

Tom Luginbill is a college football analyst for ESPN Sports and knows a thing or two about the landscape of the college game. Recently, he spoke with Nikki Hood of Tigernet.com about the strides that Lawrence has made from five-star recruit to a college football national champion in his rookie season.

"“I see a young player that is very risk-averse in the sense that he can make all the throws, he can do all the things that you need the quarterback to do but he’s not going to hurt your football team with stupid, risky mistakes,” Luginbill told Hood."

Bryant was named Clemson’s starting QB in 2017 on a team that won the ACC Championship but lost to Alabama in the Sugar Bowl as part of the College Football Playoff. The following season, Lawrence joined the Tigers and was elevated very quickly to the backup role behind Bryant.

After Clemson defeated Georgia Tech to begin the season 4-0, head coach Dabo Swinney announced that Lawrence would start the following week against Syracuse, a tough opponent, and ACC rival.

In the Georgia Tech game, Bryant struggled to get the offense moving. In relief, Lawrence tossed three TD passes and helped Clemson build a 28-7 halftime lead. Lawrence would later throw another TD and finished with a 216.6 quarterback rating as the Tigers won 49-21.

In the first four games, Bryant had thrown for 461 yards with two TDs and one INT whereas Lawrence tossed 600 yards with nine TDs against two INTs. Swinney then pulled the switch, and Lawrence never looked back.

In high school, Lawrence captured two state championships, four region titles amidst 41 consecutive victories. He was referred to as a “generational player” in which coaches and fans will view once in their generation. He ruled the Nike Charlotte Combine for The Opening, the nation’s premier recruiting vehicle.

Luginbill knows what quarterbacks think and how they react as he himself played the position for four years in college and another two seasons with arena league clubs. He then found employment as the QB coach or offensive coordinator for nine seasons of professional football; he is speaking out about Lawrence’s’ abilities as a beginning player in a very big arena called college football.

"“I think he has a great balance of saying, ‘okay, I can fit this ball in there but I’m better off going through my progression,’” Luginbill said. ”And that’s tough for young players to do because they get confident, they have a little success early on and the next thing you know you’re taking every risk in the room because you feel like you can get away with it. I think the other thing that stands out is he’s very aware of the people around him.”"

Lawrence shows a cool side on the field and nothing seems to rattle him. After taking Clemson to the school’s third national championship, he finished the season with 259 completions on 398 passing attempts, 3,280 yards, 30 TDs, a mere four INTs, a 65.1 completion ratio with a 157.2 QB rating. He also rushed for 184 yards on 60 attempts and scored once.

"“He doesn’t have to an ‘S’ on his chest,” continued Luginbill. “When he walks into that huddle and he looks in both directions and there are first-round draft choices to the right, to the left and behind. I think he has an understanding of when to push the envelope while realizing he doesn’t have to. He just gets the ball into the hands of the playmakers and the rest will take care of itself.”"

Is it possible Lawrence is outplaying every other quarterback in the entire universe of college football, despite only entering his sophomore year?

"“What people don’t really know about him is how good of an athlete he is. They don’t realize how good of a runner he is because it hasn’t had to be showcased,“ Luginbill explained. “He is a really gifted runner, so when I’m trying to do a comparison, I don’t want to make a comparison to a passer. He’s a better runner and I think he has a much stronger arm than (Indianapolis Colts QB) Andrew Luck. He’s got a lot of similar traits to (former Philadelphia Eagles QB) Randall Cunningham. He can do both.”"

Lawrence impressed everyone in college football last year and won his first national championship in the course of action. Expectations are certainly at an all-time high that he can lead the Tigers to consecutive titles in 2019, and keep impressing college football analysts in the process.