Mike Norvell discusses value of DJ Uiagalelei's experience for FSU

DJ Uiagalelei was the On3 Industry Ranking’s No. 2 quarterback in the 2020 class before he was Clemson’s No. 2 quarterback. Then he was Trevor Lawrence’s successor for two seasons. The Tigers needed a change, and so did Uiagalelei, so he went west and led Oregon State to an eight-win season in the final year of the Pac-12 as we’ll remember it.

Uiagalelei is now back in the ACC, playing for the other premier program in his old conference: Florida State.

His path to the 2024 season, the dual-threat signal caller’s fifth in college football, has hardly been conventional. But, according to FSU head coach Mike Norvell, that winding road has shaped Uiagalelei into the mature leader who’s guiding a College Football Playoff-hungry Seminoles squad this year.

“I think the journey has helped really build and develop DJ to who he is,” Norvell said on the GoJo & Golic DraftKings podcast. “He’s very smart. Obviously, he comes in, he spends a lot of time on his own being able to prepare himself. He’s so very well respected in the locker room because of his work ethic and what he does.”

Uiagalelei has appeared in 48 games and started 40 of them with a career record of 30-10. Last year, he was a semifinalist for the Davey O’Brien Award, which is given annually to the best quarterback in college football. At Oregon State, the 6-foot-4, 252-pound Uiagalelei threw for 2,638 yards while posting a 21:7 touchdown-to-interception ratio and netting an additional 219 yards and six scores on the ground.

Before that, Uiagalelei left Clemson ranking top 10 on the Tigers’ career lists for completions (515), passing touchdowns (36), quarterback rushing touchdowns (15), passing yards (5,681) and wins (22) as a starting quarterback.

Ultimately, untimely turnovers and inconsistencies tainted his run as Clemson’s starting quarterback, notably seven games between 2021-22 where he completed fewer than 50% of his pass attempts.

“He’s got almost 40 games of college starts,” Norvell said. “So he’s been in the fire. And some of that has gone really well. And some of it he’s had to face challenges, and he had to work through those challenges throughout his journey. I think every part of those experiences has built into who he is. He’s done a wonderful job since he got here in January, just pouring into his teammates, really doing all that he could to invest into them.”

Uiagelelei burst onto the scene in 2020 while Lawrence was sidelined with COVID-19. He lit up the box score for Clemson back-to-back weeks, immediately turning heads. His progression since has been far from linear.

But he’s grown considerably the last couple years, and he’s earned another opportunity to shine in the ACC and contend for a national championship.

“He’s doing a great job of learning another system,” Norvell said. “He’s been through this process a few times, and that’s something that I think has allowed him to transition pretty easy, and [he’s] definitely bringing all of himself into this program.”