Why Clemson Will Be Better Off Without Dj Uiagalelei

Via TigerNet.com on Flickr

A new Era begins at Clemson at the quarterback position.

The DJ Uiagalelei Era has come to a close.

In spite of all the hype surrounding the five-star prospect, his career in orange and purple was marred in disappointment. The lack of success led to his transfer to Oregon State in December.

In his two years at Clemson, Uiagalelei completed 59.8% of his passes for a total of 5681 passing yards with 36 touchdowns and 17 interceptions. His numbers put him amongst the top players in Clemson history, ranking him seventh in program history in passing touchdowns and eighth in passing yards. However, his inconsistency and underwhelming performance to the fans, considering the hype he came into Death Valley with, was too much for him to stay at Clemson.

The pressure seemed to get to him at times throughout his career with the Tigers. Most notably, his underwhelming performance against in-state rival South Carolina was a sore spot for the fan base. Uiagalelei only completed eight of 29 passes for only 99 yards along with a touchdown and interception in last year’s 31-30 loss to the Gamecocks. That loss signaled the end of DJ’s time in Clemson.

This season's replacement from Uiagalelei at the quarterback position will be another highly-touted recruit, Cade Klubnik, who is coming in with a lot if hype. Klubnik was ranked as the top quarterback in the nation for the Class of 2022 by Sports Illustrated and Rivals while ranked second in the nation by 247Sports. Fans are hopeful that Klubnik can bring the Tigers back to their National Championship winning ways. Can he do it? Perhaps, but only time will tell.

Needless to say, there are big changes coming in 2023 for the Clemson Tigers.