After two years as the Clemson Tigers’ quarterback, DJ Uiagalelei will enter the transfer portal, according to 247 Sports’ Chris Hummer.
Uiagalelei will have up to three years of eligibility at his next school, and it is not yet known when he will enter the portal.
Uiagalelei was the No. 1 quarterback recruit in the Class of 2020 and a consensus five-star recruit. He was expected to become the next great Clemson quarterback, following in the footsteps of Trevor Lawrence, Deshaun Watson and Tajh Boyd.
Uiagalelei has struggled at Clemson during the last two seasons, leading to his benching in the ACC Championship on Saturday against North Carolina, a 39-10 win. Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney said Cade Klubnik, who went 20-for-24 with 279 yards and a touchdown, would be the Tigers’ starter moving forward.
“Cade will be the starter going in, and DJ will be the backup,” Swinney said. “We’ll keep moving forward, and I’m sure there will be plenty of conversations, he graduates in a week or so, so he’s got a bright future. He’s got a bright future. Obviously, it didn’t end tonight the way he would like, but he’s got a bright, bright future as a football player.”
During the 2020 season, he showed that he had potential against Notre Dame, playing for Lawrence when he was out with COVID-19. Uiagalelei threw for 439 yards and two touchdowns but the Tigers ultimately lost 47-40 in double overtime.
In 35 appearances for Clemson, Uiagalelei completed just under 60 percent of his passes for 5,681 yards, 36 touchdowns and 17 interceptions. No. 10 Clemson failed to make the College Football Playoff in both of Uiagalelei’s starting seasons, which snapped a streak of six consecutive appearances in a national semifinal.
