Trevor Lawrence is starting to look like the quarterback Clemson fans remember, and that only throws the Tigers’ recent issues at the position into sharper focus.
In Jacksonville’s Week 1 win over the Cleveland Browns, Lawrence was sharp from the start. He finished 18-of-23 for 245 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions. He had just one more incompletion than touchdown passes, a line that says plenty about how clean and controlled his day was.
CBS Sports’ Damien Harris, who faced Lawrence in college at Alabama, was quick to point out how familiar that performance looked.
"The way Trevor Lawrence played today, it reminds me of when he was at Clemson," Harris said of Lawrence's tremendous Week 1 showing for the Jaguars over the Browns. "He's really making a push to be in that upper echelon of quarterbacks."
That kind of outing also highlights how different things look in Jacksonville now compared with the start of Lawrence’s NFL career. He entered the league and immediately had to navigate Urban Meyer as his head coach.
Now, with Grant Udinski in place as part of Liam Coen’s staff, the Jaguars have a play-caller who can help Lawrence settle into the kind of rhythm that made him so dangerous in college. With that setup, Jacksonville could be a real factor in the AFC playoff race.
For Clemson, though, the contrast is hard to ignore. The Tigers are moving forward with Christopher Vizzina and Tait Reynolds, and Reynolds’ offseason quarterback battle brought some lofty comparisons. He was mentioned in the same breath as Lawrence, Deshaun Watson and Tajh Boyd, with the idea that he could eventually climb into that same class of Clemson quarterbacks.
That may be too much to ask.
Lawrence was a different kind of prospect altogether. Coming out of Clemson, he was viewed as the best quarterback prospect since Andrew Luck.
A North Georgia native who grew up as a Tennessee fan and idolized Peyton Manning, Lawrence chose Clemson over Georgia and became the best quarterback Dabo Swinney ever coached. His size, poise and ability to improvise made him an easy player to latch onto then, and they still do now.
Some Clemson fans have followed Lawrence to Jacksonville, but his NFL rise also serves as a reminder of how high he lifted the quarterback standard in college. Watson and Lawrence came through in back-to-back stretches that made Clemson look spoiled at the position, though that’s what happens when a program is operating at its peak.
As for Reynolds, the better comparison may be Boyd rather than Lawrence. Boyd didn’t have much of an NFL career, but he did help define Clemson football in the early 2010s.
That’s a much more realistic lane for Reynolds, even if the Tigers are hoping for more. The encouraging part is that Boyd is on the coaching staff, and Chad Morris, his former offensive coordinator, is back calling plays.
The challenge is that Clemson doesn’t have much depth.
In Other News...
Clemson Just Sent A Clear Message Before Its ACC Opener
Clemson put out its second official depth chart ahead of its ACC opener against North Carolina, and the changes offer a clearer picture of where the Tigers stand entering conference play. The biggest wrinkle is at quarterback, where true freshman Tait Reynolds is listed ahead of Christopher Vizzina, while the defensive line also got a notable update with Devarrick Woods earning a stronger role after making the most of opportunities created by injuries around him.
The quarterback situation still carries some intrigue because Vizzina is reportedly week-to-week with an elbow injury, even though Dabo Swinney has framed the decision as performance-based rather than injury-based. Woods rise is less complicated and just as important for Clemsons front, since his play has pushed him into co-starter territory at defensive tackle and given the Tigers another sign that the rotation could look different once the games start to count. [Read more 🡒]
Clemson Fans Are Watching A Familiar QB Gamble Play Out Again
Clemson is once again heading into a quarterback decision that feels bigger than one Saturday, with Dabo Swinney choosing a young passer for an important ACC test against UNC and leaving fans to sort through the usual mix of upside, timing and patience. It is the kind of move that has become familiar around Death Valley, where the program has a history of leaning into talent at quarterback even when the safer choice might appear to be the veteran option.
The backdrop makes it even more interesting because Clemson supporters have seen this movie before, from the Trevor Lawrence and Deshaun Watson eras to the way those decisions shaped the programs ceiling. Swinneys latest call also comes with the reminder that the older option remains in the mix, even as the staff hands the offense to the freshman, and that is exactly why the conversation around this game feels like more than a one-week depth chart change. [Read more 🡒]
Clemson Suddenly Needs Vic Burley For A Much Bigger Reason
With Clemson moving toward its ACC opener against North Carolina, Vic Burley is back in the fold and the timing matters. Head coach Dabo Swinney reinstated the defensive lineman after a two-week suspension, giving the Tigers another body up front as they prepare for a conference game that already carries real weight for their standing in the league.
Burleys return also closes a difficult late-summer chapter for a player Clemson still needs on the field. Swinney said Burley owned the mistake and handled the consequences, and now the focus shifts to how quickly he can fold back into a rotation the Tigers will lean on more heavily as the schedule turns to conference play. [Read more 🡒]