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Clemson QB D.J. Uiagalelei addresses his future following being benched in ACC Championship Game

Wade-Peeryby: Wade Peery12/04/22
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(Eakin Howard/Getty Images)

Clemson quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei was benched after two series of the 2022 ACC Championship Game on Saturday night. Tigers’ head coach Dabo Swinney decided to roll with backup Cade Klubnik, who was one of the most highly touted prospects in Texas high school football history. According to David Hale of ESPN, Swinney said he’d always planned to play Klubnik on the third series of the ACC Championship Game. He thought the Texan would take over the starting job against Notre Dame, but it didn’t happen.

The freshman signal-caller shined in a big way on Saturday night, torching the North Carolina defense to the tune of over 300 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns, one on the ground and one through the air. Clemson routed North Carolina with Klubnik under center, 39-10. Following the ACC Championship Game, Uiagalelei addressed his future with ESPN’s David Hale.

“I’m just worried about the ACC and enjoying it and…I don’t know.” He said he plans to treat the next month “the same way I’ve always treated it. Put my best foot forward and go out and play football,” Uiagalelei said.

Uiagalelei has certainly had his share of spectacular performances in the 2022 season for the Tigers. Against Wake Forest, he completed 26 of 41 passes for 371 passing yards, while tossing five touchdowns and no interceptions. Games like that certainly demonstrate Uiagalelei’s ceiling, but he’s had more bad moments than good ones during the 2022 campaign. There’s no way to dance around it. He’s struggled with consistency issues for much of the past two years.

Uiagalelei has definitely looked incredible in certain games (Wake Forest) but then had some forgettable performances (please see Notre Dame and South Carolina). The biggest question moving forward is will he decide to stay at Clemson and be the backup to Cade Klubnik or will he decide to enter the transfer portal and look for a fresh start elsewhere?

We’ll have to wait for the answer to that question sometime in the near future. Uiagalelei has plenty of size, physical tools, and upside, but he’ll need to work on improving the consistency of his mechanics for his long-term future as a quarterback prospect, no matter where he ends up.