Clemson Football

Dabo Swinney attempted to shoot down any notion of a quarterback controversy after DJ Uiagalelei was benched in the third quarter of Clemson's 27-21 comeback victory over Syracuse on Saturday.

Speaking to ESPN after the game, Swinney said "ain't no question" Uiagalelei will remain the Tigers' starter.

True freshman Cade Klubnik replaced Uiagalelei with Clemson trailing 21-10. The Tigers scored 17 unanswered points to escape with a win and remain undefeated.

Uiagalelei entered the day as a potential down-ballot Heisman contender. He threw for 1,665 yards and completed 64 percent of his passes while running for 337 yards and accounting for 21 touchdowns with two interceptions in the first seven games.

The junior quarterback matched his interception total for the season in three quarters against Syracuse's defense. He completed 13 of 21 attempts for 138 yards with no touchdowns before he was benched.

Even though Clemson's offense came to life in the fourth quarter, Klubnik didn't set the world on fire under center. The 19-year-old went 2-of-4 for 19 yards through the air and had 13 rushing yards on eight attempts.

The rushing attack, led by Phil Mafah and Will Shipley, led the Tigers' comeback. They combined for 135 rushing yards on Klubnik's first three drives.

Clemson was also aided by penalties from Syracuse's defense. Elijah Fuentes-Cundiff was flagged for a personal foul after a 10-yard run from Klubnik on a 3rd-and-25 play that helped set up a touchdown to cut the deficit to 21-16.

Isaiah Johnson was called for pass interference on 3rd-and-11 with 2:58 remaining to give the Tigers a first down. They finished the drive with a field goal to extend their lead to 27-21 with 93 seconds left to play.

Based on how high Uiagalelei's ceiling is and how well he played heading into Saturday, it wouldn't be a surprise to see him remain the starter.

Swinney does have extra time to make decisions about his starting quarterback. Clemson has two weeks before it takes on Notre Dame in South Bend on Nov. 5.

Despite the benching of quarterback DJ Uiagalelei in favor of true freshman Cade Klubnik, the No. 5 Clemson Tigers remained undefeated with a 27-21 win over the No. 14 Syracuse Orange at Memorial Stadium in Clemson, South Carolina, on Saturday.

With Uiagalelei at the controls, Clemson turned the ball over four times and trailed 21-10 through three quarters of play, which sparked the quarterback change.

Uiagalelei was directly responsible for three of those turnovers, including one that put Syracuse firmly in control of the game in the second quarter.

In addition to throwing a pair of interceptions, Uiagalelei fumbled the ball while the Tigers were going in for a score, and Syracuse defensive back Ja'Had Carter returned it 90 yards for a touchdown:

That put the Orange ahead 14-7 and represented a 14-point swing, and the Tigers went into the locker room at halftime trailing 21-10.

When Clemson couldn't close the gap in the third quarter and Uiagalelei threw his second interception of the day, head coach Dabo Swinney decided to replace him with Klubnik, who was rated by 247Sports as the No. 1 quarterback in the 2022 recruiting class.

Amid his struggles and after getting benched, Uiagalelei was the subject of a ton of criticism from observers on social media:

Klubnik didn't do anything spectacular with 19 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions on 2-of-4 passing, but he seemed to give the Tigers new life when they needed it most, and he came through with a big two-point conversion after Clemson's go-ahead touchdown by running back Will Shipley.

From the time Klubnik took over for Uiagalelei through the end of the game, the Tigers scored 17 unanswered points, which allowed them to hand the Orange their first loss of the season.

Now, the question becomes whether Swinney will stick with Klubnik going forward or go back to Uiagalelei in the next game despite how poorly he played against Syracuse.

During his postgame interview with ABC, Swinney insisted that Uiagalelei is "our guy" and "our quarterback," but he will have some time to make a final decision, as Clemson is on the bye next week before returning for a road game against Notre Dame on Nov. 5.

No. 5 Clemson earned its biggest win of the season and remains unbeaten after taking down No. 10 North Carolina State 30-20 on Saturday.

With the result, Tigers star DJ Uiagalelei continued to breathe some life into his fledgling Heisman Trophy campaign. The junior quarterback finished 21-of-30 through the air for 209 yards and one touchdown and ran for another 73 yards and two scores.

Uiagalelei displayed his touch on a seven-yard touchdown pass to Jake Briningstool in the third quarter—the kind of throw that won't go unnoticed by NFL scouts.

In general, his poise in the pocket is a significant departure from 2021, when he finished with more interceptions than touchdowns and completed just 55.6 percent of his passes.

The 6'4", 235-pound signal-caller has faced lofty expectations dating back to high school because of his size and athleticism. After his development got derailed, he appears to be firmly back on track.

When it comes to the Heisman race, Uiagalelei remains an outsider.

Ohio State's CJ Stroud arguably has the inside track, and reigning winner Bryce Young is right behind. The Alabama quarterback suffered a shoulder injury against Arkansas, though, so his availability going forward is a bit unclear. Young's exit Saturday might have opened the door for another contender, teammate Jahmyr Gibbs anyway.

Even if the Heisman Trophy is a long shot for Uiagalelei, his improvement puts Clemson on solid footing for a College Football Playoff bid.