From his sophomore year to his senior year, Lawrence led the Purple Hurricanes to 41 straight victories, winning two state championships and four region titles while also receiving numerous national high school player of the year honors. In 2017, Lawrence broke the Georgia state record for passing yards and passing touchdowns, which were previously held by Deshaun Watson of Gainesville, who also played for Clemson.[5][6]
Lawrence was a five-star recruit who was regarded as one of the best high school quarterback prospects of all time.[7][8][9][10] On December 16, 2016, he committed to Clemson University to play college football.[11][12]
Lawrence threw for 3,280 passing yards and 30 touchdowns on the season, and was awarded the National Freshman of the Year and Archie Griffin Award by the Touchdown Club of Columbus.[17] He was also awarded ACC Rookie of the Year honors.[18]
Sophomore year
Lawrence in 2019
Returning for his sophomore year with the Tigers, Lawrence was named preseason ACC Player of the Year and was considered a leading candidate for the Heisman Trophy.[19] Relatively inconsistent play in the early part of the season all but lost Lawrence the Heisman Trophy race, but he led FBS in passer rating over the final half of the regular season and ended seventh in Heisman Trophy voting.[20][21] Lawrence helped lead Clemson to an undefeated regular season and an ACC Championship Game victory over Virginia, which gave them the No. 3 ranking in the final College Football Playoff rankings.[22][23] In the 2019 Fiesta Bowl against Ohio State, he had 259 passing yards and two touchdowns to go along with 16 rushes for 107 yards and a touchdown in the 29–23 victory that brought them to the national championship game for the second consecutive year.[24] Lawrence lost the first game of his career in the CFP Championship Game against LSU, as Clemson snapped its 29-game winning streak and lost 42–25. Lawrence posted the worst passer rating of his career as he only completed 18 of 37 passes for 234 yards and zero passing touchdowns in the game.[25][26]
Junior year
Lawrence returned for his junior season with the Tigers. In his first six games of the season, Lawrence threw for 1,833 passing yards with 17 touchdowns and 2 interceptions. On October 30, 2020, Lawrence tested positive for COVID-19, which resulted in a 10-day quarantine, per ACC protocols. As a result, he missed two games before returning.[27] Clemson lost one of those two games, to Notre Dame. After Lawrence returned to the team, he helped guide the Tigers back to the ACC Championship Game by finishing in second in the division-less format adopted for the 2020 season. They defeated Notre Dame in the rematch in the conference title game with Lawrence starting at quarterback, and were selected to a spot in the College Football Playoff. In the CFP semi-final, the Sugar Bowl, Lawrence and the Tigers lost to Ohio State.
Lawrence finished his final season with the Tigers 231-of-334 for 3,153 passing yards with 24 touchdowns and 5 interceptions. He was named ACC Player of the Year, and finished in second in voting for the Heisman Trophy behind Alabama wide receiver DeVonta Smith.
Lawrence had surgery to repair a torn shoulder labrum in his left shoulder in February 2021 prior to being selected first-overall by the Jacksonville Jaguars in April 2021.[36][37][38]
Personal life
Lawrence is a Christian.[39][40] He is noted for his long blonde hair.[41][42][43] On April 10, 2021, Lawrence married Marissa Mowry, whom he had been dating since high school.[44][45] Lawrence's older brother, Chase, is a visual artist for whom Trevor has posed for before.[46]
References
^Birchfield, Jeff (December 5, 2018). "Freshman Sensation: East Tennessee native Lawrence leads Clemson to playoff". Johnson City Press. Retrieved September 2, 2019. His older brother Chase was born in Johnson City and Trevor in Knoxville, they lived in Washington County before his family moved to Cartersville, Georgia.