SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. _ "The bigger the moment, the better he plays."
Those were the words Clemson co-offensive coordinator Tony Elliott used to describe Tigers quarterback Trevor Lawrence as a freshman, a statement that Lawrence has proven to be true time and time again over the past two seasons.
Lawrence is 28-0 in his college career, 24-0 as a starter and led Clemson to a perfect 15-0 season as a true freshman in 2018. He has 20 touchdowns and no interceptions in the past six games entering Saturday's Fiesta Bowl against Ohio State, and the Georgia native can't wait for another opportunity to shine under the bright lights.
"To me, I live for games like this. I love playing in these big games where everyone's watching," Lawrence said Tuesday. "All year the narrative has been we haven't played anyone, but now we get to play one of the best teams and really show what we can do."
Those words might be a bit frightening for an Ohio State program that is 0-3 all-time against Clemson.
Lawrence has yet to play in a "big game" this season _ the Tigers have faced only one team in the current College Football Playoff poll in No. 24 Virginia. But he passed for 674 yards and six touchdowns, with no interceptions, against Notre Dame and Alabama in the playoff last year.
Lawrence is by all accounts a better player now than he was then.
"I think I've gotten a lot smarter. I know a lot more football. I've played a lot more and just been in a lot of different situations, so I can pull from all of those," he said. "As far as decision-making, I feel like I've done a lot better job this year besides a few plays. But overall I feel like I'm making a lot more plays down the field and really giving my guys a chance to make a catch more than I was last year."
Even with all of his success this season, Lawrence is the only quarterback in the College Football Playoff who was not a Heisman finalist. He enters the playoff having completed 69% of his passes for 3,172 yards, with 34 touchdowns and eight interceptions. He has thrown only 21 passes in the fourth quarter all year.
"All I want to do is win and I've done that since I've been here. We've done that," Lawrence said. "This is just another opportunity to do that again and do that on one of the biggest stages."
Lawrence might not have joined LSU's Joe Burrow, Ohio State's Justin Fields and Oklahoma's Jalen Hurts as quarterbacks who were Heisman finalists, but he believes he belongs in that group and is looking forward to proving it Saturday.
"You can't argue anything those other guys have done, so for me to say that I should've been there instead of them is diminishing what they've done," he said. "But I believe I'm one of the best players in college football. My play will speak for itself. I don't really have to worry about any awards. I think winning the national championship says a lot more than those."
