D.J. Uiagalelei's job security in doubt with Clemson football's offense 'not very good'

RALEIGH, N.C. -- Throughout his early season struggles, Clemson sophomore quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei, former Heisman hopeful, remained the unquestioned leader of the Tigers’ offense in coaches’ eyes.

The struggles continued.

And it seems Uiagalelei’s job security is not quite so firm.

Clemson (2-2) lost at North Carolina State, 27-21, Saturday in two overtimes. Uiagalelei was stellar in the Tigers’ second possession of the game and led them to a touchdown with pinpoint accuracy and timing. But the rest was mostly more of what brought doubts in the first three games.

Related:Takeaways from Clemson football's loss to N.C. State in two overtimes

Injuries this season: Clemson tight-lipped as it awaits word on severity of injuries to Shipley, Skalski and Bresee

Uiagalelei finished with a miserable 111 passing yards, going 12-for-26 with a costly interception. He’s yet to throw for 200 yards and even against FCS opponent South Carolina State was just 14-for-24. Confidence in him going forward, beginning at home this week against Boston College headed into an open date, is not at the same level -- not even for his biggest supporter, head coach Dabo Swinney.

“I think D.J. is the quarterback,” Swinney said.

He thinks, but he's not sure.

That’s a different tone, especially from the always-positive Swinney.

“I thought D.J. gave us a chance to win the game,” he said. “I thought he did a lot of good things. He’s going to continue to get better. He has a great future.

“... At this point, you look at everything.”

That includes the entire offense, not just Uiagalelei. Clemson last season averaged 43.5 points and 500 yards per game. This season, the Tigers, including the game against an FCS opponent, have the worst offense (295.5 yards) in the ACC. Against three FBS teams, the Tigers (in regulation) have averaged 188.7 yards and 10.3 points.

“We’ve been an offense that has been really, really good for a long, long time,” Swinney said. “But the criticism is warranted because that’s where we are right now. The way we’ve performed, we’re going to get criticism. We’re going to get comments and things like that. And you know what? That comes with the territory because of the expectation and the standard at Clemson. We’re not meeting that.

“... We’re not very good right now.”

Clemson will host Boston College on Saturday with a new goal of just trying to reach the ACC championship  game in Charlotte, where the Tigers began this season with a 10-3 loss to Georgia. They have made the four-team College Football Playoff for six straight years with two national championships and two runner-up finishes.

With two losses already, national title hopes are gone.

“This is certainly not what we intended,” Swinney said. “We’ve just got to regroup. That’s all I can say. It’s been a long time since we’ve been in a situation like this, that’s for sure. We’ll just focus on this week and what’s in front of us. .. We need to continue to stay together. That’s the main thing. Let’s find a way to win a game.”