Former Clemson star quarterback Trevor Lawrence is entering his fifth year with the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2025, and it will be the third different head coach he’s played under with the franchise. Liam Coen has taken over as the Jaguars’ head coach, succeeding Doug Pederson, who replaced Urban Meyer after the 2021 season.

This week, Lawrence took some time to reflect on his beloved head coach at the college level – Clemson’s Dabo Swinney. Before being selected with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, Lawrence suited up for Swinney from 2018-20, and together, they helped the Tigers win three ACC Championships, earn three College Football Playoff berths and win the national title in 2018.

During an interview on Pardon My Take, Lawrence raved about Swinney when asked to explain what is special about the longtime head coach and what makes him tick.

“First of all, I love the guy – like genuinely,” Lawrence said. “I’m not just saying that because I played for him. He is awesome. And I’d say, too – there’s a ton of people that love him, there’s a lot of people that don’t like him, just for whatever reason. But what you see really is what you get with him. He doesn’t put on a fake personality. … I remember when I was there and he’d say something in the media, and people would kill him for it, and he just doesn’t care. He’s just always honest.”

Lawrence added that although Swinney understands the game of football, “he’s not a huge Xs and Os guy,” but instead really thrives as a motivator of his players.

“Our team meetings would be so long. But there were times where it’s like alright, this is long, but honestly he kept our attention,” Lawrence said. “Great motivator. He would make you believe you could do anything. It didn’t matter who we were playing. [It was] like, we’re gonna kill these dudes. … He was awesome. I still talk to him like once a month.”

Lawrence, a former five-star prospect and No. 1 overall recruit nationally, also praised Swinney as a recruiter.

“You wanna go play for him,” Lawrence said. “He sells the family atmosphere of Clemson, and then you get there and it really is like that. It’s a great place to go to school. But man, he’s a stud. I love him.”

Under Swinney, Lawrence ascended to become the winningest quarterback in Clemson history (34-2). Lawrence (second in 2020) also became the second Heisman Trophy finalist in program history, tying Deshaun Watson (second in 2016) for the highest finish in Heisman Trophy voting in school history.

Lawrence left with Clemson career records in career winning percentage (.944), pass efficiency rating (164.3), yards per passing attempt (8.87) and tying for the most wins against Top 25 opponents (nine).

You can check out more of Lawrence’s interview on Pardon My Take below: