Uiagalelei talks difficult transfer decision, what Oregon State opportunity brings vs. Clemson |
Former Clemson quarterback
DJ Uiagalelei recently divulged some of his transfer thought process and what he's looking to get out of his stop at Oregon State now.
Uiagalelei started two seasons for the Tigers but saw his grip on the role loosen in the ACC Championship, where freshman 5-star Cade Klubnik plugged in early to lead the Tigers to an ACC title. Uiagalelei entered the transfer portal that weekend with his multiple years of eligibility left. He told Oregon State reporters that he let the Beavers know he was interested but didn't hear back from them for a couple of weeks, but he was happy when they were ready to bring him on board. Uiagalelei said Oregon State's pro-style offensive attack intrigued him over what he played in at Clemson. "For me, it was kind of like a business decision," Uiagalelei told reporters recently. “I told all the coaches and (other) people I talked to, I said, ‘It didn’t matter if I was going to play in Alaska or if I was going to play down to Florida, I wanted to go somewhere that was going to put me in the best position to maximize my talents and was going to help me to (grow) as a quarterback." Uiagalelei was the No. 1-rated pro-style quarterback in the 2020 247Sports Composite rankings. "I like the way he called plays, I like the different stuff they did under center," Uiagalelei said of Oregon State's offense. "The offense they run here is kind of like San Francisco or the old L.A. Rams when they had Jared Goff. They’re kind of similar to the (Sean) McVay offense and (Kyle) Shanahan. Different stuff like that. And for me, that’s what I told him. I felt like it was a great system for me to learn from and to be able to grow my game." Uiagalelei called his time in Clemson "a blessing" and said the decision to leave was difficult for the relationships he forged. "I feel like that was ultimately the hardest part,” he said. “Leaving the people you care about."
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