Far from soft: Lawrence might be smooth as silk, but underneath he's tough as nails

When Trevor Lawrence powered into the endzone for a touchdown with 2:31 left in the third quarter, giving Clemson a 35-10 lead over Miami, the usually unflappable quarterback spiked the ball into the turf.

It was a rare moment when the quarterback crossed over the boundaries that Dabo Swinney sets for his program and that he sets for himself.

Lawrence, who had been popped in the chest by safety Keontra Smith, earlier in the drive, took a shot to the helmet from safety Gilbert Frierson as he crossed into the endzone.  After that stiff blow, Clemson’s leader had enough, and it was time to do some chirping. The Hurricanes had created a storm within the Tigers' star quarterback. 

It was a passionate moment. A challenge answered if you will. 

Lawrence was also drilled in the helmet by starting safety Amari Carter in the first quarter, which resulted in an ejection, but the 6’6 star took it in stride. Lawrence had endured several other big shots besides the hits from Carter, Smith (also ejected), and Frierson, and with the game now in hand after the score, he let loose.

Like David Banner of The Incredible Hulk (1977-1982 TV series), when you make Lawrence angry, there is another side of him, at least, competitively, that comes out. We’ve seen it before, but this past weekend even the former five-star quarterback had to admit that he’d let it get the best of him.

Leaving the field, cameras caught Swinney fussing at his top prospect, “Don’t you stoop down. Don’t you do that. Don’t you be who they are. That ain’t who you are.” 

After the game, Lawrence agreed with his head coach.

“Yeah, that was just a dumb play on my part. That's not what we are coached to do,” Lawrence said. "So I'll take that one obviously. Shouldn't have done that, but I was just, I was fired up. That's really all it was. I let my emotions get a little too hot. But I was fired up."

That fire burns deep within Lawrence, and although he can make the game of football look as smooth and effortless as anyone, when provoked, he can turn things up in a hurry.

"Coach Streeter always talks about one of the most important things to the quarterback is just being tough, and that's something I pride myself on," said Lawrence.

Saturday night in Death Valley, Miami brought a boatload of swagger and attempted to rattle Lawrence, but sometimes it seems that even when he gets knocked around, he just comes back better than before.

The final drive in the third quarter was a prime example, and even though Coach Swinney said that Lawrence “milked” the injury after being hit in the sternum, the Tigers leader said he was sore, but it wasn’t anything to be concerned about.

"It's a physical game. That hit when I was down, I really just got hit with his helmet right in my stomach. So knocked the breath out of me, pretty bad,” Lawrence recalled. “I couldn't breathe. So I came out, then I got my breath back next play. I was feeling good. It wasn't anything serious. That's why I was able to come back."

The fire we’ve seen from Lawrence dates back to his dustup during an intramural basketball game his freshman season. While he had already led Clemson to a national title, that was the first true glimpse of the competitor that we’ve seen on Saturdays when Lawrence is challenged or feels like he's been hit with a cheap shot. 

"To come back in the game and finish that drive was was super important to the momentum of the game,” Lawrence noted. “It really gave us some momentum, so that was a big drive. I knew we needed to put it in there, so just trying to do everything I can to win."

Following the game, we asked Lawrence if he thought that opponents might believe he’s “soft” because of how effortless things can seem for him at times.

He took a second and gave a slightly uncomfortable answer, “Sure?”

A moment of honesty from the future No. 1 draft pick, at least my question didn’t make him angry.