Dabo Talks NCST … DJU… Confidence.. and Boston College

By Thomas Woods

    On Sunday, October 2, Coach Dabo Swinney addressed the media; he went over the NC State game and the upcoming Boston College game. Coach Swinney was very appreciative of the fans for creating such a good atmosphere for the team to feed on. He said he was disappointed in how the defense started, but he praised how they finished the game. Dabo also talked about how the defense still hasn’t fielded a complete unit due to lingering injuries, so the Tigers still have room for growth as the season progresses. Coach talked had positive words for all three phases of the game saying, “All three phases (are) doing a lot of good things, but all three phases have plenty of room for improvement.” Coach Swinney is never satisfied, and he is always striving to be better than the week before. This sentiment is true when it comes to his thoughts on DJ Uiagalelei.

    When asked about the Junior quarterback following up a big game against Wake Forest last week, Swinney said, “That’s what good players do. Good players have consistency in their performance regardless who they play against.” He also talked about DJ’s ability to attack every part of the and how important it has been to have the quarterback using his legs in the run game. Most importantly, Coach Swinney talked about how contagious DJ’s confidence and leadership has been in the locker room. 

    Another common theme from Coach Swinney is how important it has been to have multiple guys who can make plays. The offense this year hasn’t been one dimensional; there have been plenty of guys who the Tigers have turned to in big moments. When Swinney addressed what has the offense performing so well, he said, “It’s not like you’ve just got one guy who can run out there and make a play… everybody on the field can make a play.” He had a similar response when asked about Sophomore running back Will Shipley not scoring for the first time this year, saying “that’s when we are at our best around here, when we can involve a lot of different players in different ways.” Even with all of the positives with the offense, Coach Swinney still would like to see the offense clean up penalties and negative yards.

    Another topic Dabo covered included Bryan Bresee’s status; coach said that he is day-to-day currently as they monitor his situation. He also talked about the coordinators’ performances so far; he said he is obviously pleased because the Tigers are undefeated. While the play calling hasn’t been perfect, there has been consistent improvement, and there is a lot to be happy with so far. Swinney also talked about the importance of a good week of practice going into next weekend. Clemson will play in Boston against Boston College in a game where the Tigers will likely be heavy favorites. Clemson and BC will kickoff at 7:30 as the Tigers try to improve their winning streak.