Clemson Football: It’s time to stop worrying about feelings

There were plenty of reasons to praise Clemson football for their performance on Labor Day night against Georgia Tech. It was the first game of the season, and there are no preseason games for college teams. The defense came out ready to play, getting a turnover on Tech’s first offensive play. The special teams were a pleasant surprise, getting two blocked punts.

There were also areas that weren’t great. Overall, the offense wasn’t impressive. They put together two solid drives, the first in the 2nd quarter that led to a Beaux Collins touchdown catch, and the second in the 3rd quarter, capped by a DJ Uiagalelei touchdown run. Otherwise, Clemson’s touchdown drives came on short fields (thanks to the blocked punts) or in garbage time with the reserves. DJ was hot & cold. He made some good plays, but also looked timid and lost on other plays. The offensive line didn’t have a good night, and while some receivers played well, others were non-factors.

There are still several reasons to believe that Clemson can have a great 2022 season. They have the defense, and the offense can get there. The staff have the next two weekends to iron out some of the wrinkles that negatively impacted the Tigers against Tech.

There is an unfortunate reality: unless some performances are drastically different over the next few weeks than they were on Labor Day Monday, there might be some wrinkles that can only be ironed out by changing personnel.

That’s not something I enjoy thinking about, and I think most people don’t enjoy that. I think as fans, we would prefer to see guys turn their fortunes around. That can still happen for a few guys on the offense. Then again, it might not.

There are some young players that need time to develop. Marcus Tate had to learn on the job last season when he was called upon to start. We’ve heard a lot of positive things about Blake Miller over the past month, and it was exciting to hear he had won a starting job. Then we saw him against Georgia Tech and we realized he is still a freshman. We saw some good moments but overall he struggled.

Miller is young. He has time. Maybe he needs to continue to develop as a backup. We will have to be patient and see how things work out for him.

Some other players aren’t young. Some other players have been in the program at least a couple years, sometimes three years. There are some veteran players who didn’t carry their weight on Labor Day, and it is time those players either step up, or step aside.

The obvious name people think of here is DJ Uiagalelei. There was a lot of optimism that an improved work ethic, an injury-free summer and a new season would result in a new DJ. He didn’t have to be Heisman-hopeful DJ again, just a reliable quarterback that could take care of the ball and be efficient. As I said, there were good moments, but there were times when the offense just couldn’t put anything together, and DJ definitely contributed to that stagnation.

On the other hand, freshman Cade Klubnik came in for the final drive of the game and looked good. He wasn’t perfect, but he did take care of the ball and he was reliable. More than that, he looked comfortable, something that it seems we rarely see from DJ.

I understand that the staff, including Coach Swinney, have invested a lot of hard work in bringing DJ along. I understand that they may have reasons that they handle DJ the way the do, and part of that could be influenced by keeping DJ’s head space where it needs to be.

Sometimes statements can be misunderstood, so I want to say this right now: everyone should take mental health seriously, and if a player, even a college age athlete, has special needs, coaches and managers should do what they can to support that player.

That being said, accountability has to be considered as well. If a veteran player isn’t playing well, and there is a better option, then the change needs to be made. That can be done while also being considerate of the veteran players feelings, but the possibility that a player’s head space could be negatively impacted by losing their job can’t be a barrier to making the change. There is no problem with making sure the alternate option is 100% ready to go, and I do think the staff is making sure that Klubnik is completely ready before they make any moves. Eventually, when it becomes clear that Klubnik is a better option, even the players will see it, and the staff will need to make the change.

This sentiment doesn’t just apply to Uiagalelei. There are other skill players who didn’t make the kind of impact that we expect veterans to make. Joseph Ngata had one reception for 7 yards. EJ Williams had one reception for 8 yards. Maybe they just had a bad night. It happens. Maybe they just aren’t developing.

We will see over the next few weeks. They will have their chance to make an impact against Furman and Louisiana Tech, but so will the guys who could replace him. Antonio Williams and Will Taylor feel like slot guys at first glance, but that doesn’t mean they can’t work at other spots. There is also Dacari Collins, who saw a fair amount of playing time last year when Ngata and Williams were injured. Eventually, Adam Randall will return from his ACL injury, and I think most of us remember the positive reviews he got from the staff.

The obvious sensitivity here is that a player spurned can end up in the portal. This isn’t the NFL – Clemson can’t just sign a new player. If a guy leaves the team to preserve his eligibility, the team is down a man. The wide receiver room is well-stocked, but if one or two guys leave, and then there are injuries, the group could be playing very young guys again or, like last season, walk-ons.

Its a risk, but again, its a risk the staff has to be willing to take to put the best team on the field. If Randall is better than Ngata or Williams, he needs to be on the field. If Antonio Williams is better than Ngata or EJ Williams, he needs to be on the field, even if he isn’t in the slot.

Lastly, there has to be improvement on the offensive line. That might be harder than at quarterback or receiver. There might not be better options on the roster. That doesn’t mean something can’t be done eventually.

The staff has been resistant to taking transfers from the portal, but they did make a conservative effort to bring in two offensive linemen this past offseason. Their standard was pretty high. It wasn’t a bad strategy for plugging a spot, but let’s stop pretending here: after Jordan McFadden goes to the NFL, Clemson may legitimately need to upgrade at four out of the five starting spots. If that is what is needed, then the scope of what they are looking for in the portal needs to widen.

Clemson football has a great defense, and the offense can get there and two weeks to iron out the issues, tough decisions loom for coaches

I’m not oblivious to the impact. I understand the staff wants current players and recruits to know that they are the priority, and I think that is a philosophy that works….most of the time. If the woes of the line don’t see notable improvements over the course of the season, then they have to look at the veterans – Parks, Putnam, Mayes, Tucker – and question if it isn’t time to move on and try to find better competition in the portal. It’s probably a stretch to think they could find four new starters in the portal, but they could at least bring in more competition that may push the incumbents to improve, or push them aside.

Its just the first game of the season, so there is time for everyone to get it together, but the staff, the team and the fans have been patient with some of the players who didn’t play well this past weekend. Coaches are put on the hot seat all the time. I think some players should be put on the hot seat, whether they or anyone else is upset about it or not.