DJ Uiagalelei

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DJ Uiagalelei
DJ Uiagalelei preseason (cropped).jpg
Clemson Tigers – No. 5
PositionQuarterback
ClassSophomore
MajorCommunication
Personal information
Born: (2001-04-17) April 17, 2001 (age 20)
Height6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight260 lb (118 kg)
Career history
College
High schoolSt. John Bosco
(Bellflower, California)
Career highlights and awards

David John "DJ" Uiagalelei[1] (/uːiːˌɑːŋɡələˈleɪ/ oo-ee-AHNG-guh-luh-LAY; born April 17, 2001[2]) is an American football quarterback for the Clemson Tigers.

Early life and high school career[]

Uiagalelei, who is of Samoan descent,[3][4] attended St. John Bosco High School in Bellflower, California.[5][6] As a junior in 2018, he was the USA Today High School Offensive Player of the Year after throwing for 3,366 yards and 48 touchdowns.[7] As a senior, he passed for 4,225 yards and 48 touchdowns.[8] Uiagalelei also played baseball in high school.[9]

A five-star recruit, Uiagalelei committed to Clemson University to play college football on May 5, 2019. He signed with them on December 18, 2019, and enrolled at Clemson on January 8, 2020.[10][11]

College career[]

Freshman year[]

See also: 2020 Clemson Tigers football team

Uiagalelei started his first game for Clemson on October 31, 2020, against the Boston College Eagles. He replaced Trevor Lawrence, who was removed from Clemson's starting lineup after testing positive for COVID-19.[12] Uiagalelei completed 31 passes on 40 attempts for 342 yards and 2 touchdowns in leading Clemson to a comeback victory after being down by 18 points in the first half.[13] He started a second game in place of Lawrence the following week on November 7, 2020, against undefeated Notre Dame—Clemson lost to the Irish in an overtime thriller, 47-40 despite another impressive performance by Uiagalelei, who completed 29 of 44 passes for 439 yards and 2 touchdowns.[14][15]

Sophomore year[]

After Trevor Lawrence left for the NFL, Uiagalelei became Clemson's starting quarterback. He came into the season with much hype. The Tigers were ranked #3 in the nation in the preseason poll. He even signed a deal with Dr. Pepper to appear in their commercials throughout the season. Clemson's first challenge of the season would come against the #5 Georgia Bulldogs. However, Uiagalelei played poorly, going 19-for-37 on pass attempts, threw for 178 yards, no touchdowns, and an interception. The game's only touchdown came from a pick six thrown by Uiagalelei. Clemson ultimately lost, 10-3.

Statistics[]

Clemson Tigers
Season Games Passing Rushing
GP GS Record Comp Att Yards Pct TD Int Rtg Att Yds Avg TD
2020 10 2 1−1 78 117 914 66.6 5 0 146.3 28 60 2.1 4
2021 12 12 9−3 187 342 2,059 54.7 9 9 108.7 98 304 3.1 4
Career[16] 22 14 10−4 265 459 2,973 57.7 14 9 118.3 126 364 2.9 8

References[]

  1. ^ https://www.si.com/college/2019/05/03/dj-uiagalelei-recruiting-quarterback-rankings-clemson-oregon
  2. ^ Fleming, Thomas (January 21, 2015). "2020 QB DJ Uiagalelei: Next Up..." Football Hotbed. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
  3. ^ "Meet DJ Uiagalelei, American sports' next superstar". NZ Herald. May 4, 2019. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
  4. ^ Huffman, Brandon. "Polynesian Bowl announces DJ Uiagalelei as first 2020 selection". 247Sports. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
  5. ^ Grosbard, Adam (October 10, 2018). "How D.J. Uiagalelei's year away from quarterback prepared him to lead St. John Bosco football". Press Telegram. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
  6. ^ Dellenger, Ross. "DJ Uiagalelei, 2020's No. 1 QB, has a supersized future". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
  7. ^ Newman, Logan (December 18, 2018). "ALL-USA Offensive Player of the Year: DJ Uiagalelei, St. John Bosco". USA TODAY High School Sports. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
  8. ^ Morales, Robert (December 20, 2019). "2019 Football Dream Team Player of the Year: DJ Uiagalelei of St. John Bosco was at his best during winning time". Press Telegram. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
  9. ^ Thamel, Pete. "Big Ben or Mariano? No. 1 QB recruit hopes to juggle sports at Clemson". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
  10. ^ VanHaaren, Tom (May 5, 2019). "Clemson lands top-50 QB prospect Uiagalelei". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
  11. ^ VanHaaren, Tom (May 6, 2019). "Clemson's new recruit D.J. Uiagalelei is the country's most patient quarterback". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
  12. ^ Hale, David M. (October 29, 2020). "Trevor Lawrence positive for COVID-19, will miss Boston College-Clemson". ESPN. Retrieved October 31, 2020.
  13. ^ Adelson, Andrea (October 31, 2020). "Freshman quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei rallies Clemson Tigers past Boston College". ESPN. Retrieved October 31, 2020.
  14. ^ Priester, JP (November 8, 2020). "Uiagalelei Felt Like He Could Have Done More in Loss to Notre Dame". SI. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  15. ^ "Game Summary Box Score (November 7, 2020)". ESPN. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  16. ^ "Clemson Tigers Football Roster – DJ Uiagalelei". clemsontigers.com. Retrieved May 27, 2021.

External links[]


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