12/17/2023 football Edit

Transfer QB target DJ Uiagalelei sees himself as a great fit in FSU offense

Curt Weiler • TheOsceola

Senior Writer

As he goes through the recruiting process for the third time, Oregon State transfer quarterback DJ Uiagalelei knows what he wants out of recruiting visits.

He left his visit to Florida State on Sunday satisfied and with all of his questions answered.

"It was great, man. Everything I looked forward to," Uiagalelei said as he left his visit. "All the questions I had, they answered them. They have a great program here. I think Coach (Mike) Norvell has done a great job, they do a great job on offense. The way they've executed this year, 13-0. It's tough how that ended for them, but they had an unbelievable season. It was good for me to see how they get down, how they run the ship here. They do a good job."

When the 6-foot-5, 252-pound Uiagalelei, originally a five-star Clemson signee in the 2020 recruiting class out of Bellflower (Calif.) St. John Bosco High, entered the transfer portal after one season at Oregon State looking for a new school to spend his final season of eligibility, FSU emerged as an immediate contender.

He had a few conversations with Norvell, offensive coordinator Alex Atkins and quarterback coach Tony Tokarz over the phone, but this weekend's visit provided a chance for more informational, face-to-face conversations in terms of his fit in FSU's offense and more.

"They knew what they're doing. I think that's the biggest thing for me. They know football, they know X's and O's, they know scheme. They are great people as well," Uiagalelei said. "I just wanted to sit down and talk with them face-to-face. I've talked to them over the phone, but to be able to talk to them face-to-face, ask them different questions I had about the offense. It was good talking to them."

Uiagalelei is coming off a season where he threw for 2,638 yards, 21 touchdowns and seven interceptions at OSU. His 8.4 yards per pass attempt ranked in the top 30 nationally and was 10th nationally this season in PFF's big-time throw rate (6.8%). He also rushed for 219 yards and six touchdowns this season.

A big part of why FSU was the first place he visited this cycle was because of how well he sees Norvell's offense as a fit for him.

"100%. I wouldn't have come here if I didn't think it was a fit. There's a reason why I'm here and a reason why I like Florida State, because I think it's a great fit for me..." Uiagalelei said. "Pushing the ball down the field, they've got playmakers outside, have a great offensive line. They score a lot of points, man. I feel like for me, my biggest thing is I want to keep getting developed as a quarterback. There are a lot of things I want to be able to continue to get better at and learn from. I feel like under coach Norvell and a lot of the coaches here, they could take my game to the next level, continue to help me develop, progress."

A lot of that faith in FSU comes from Uiagalelei, who faced off against FSU and Jordan Travis in both 2021 and 2022 at Clemson, seeing how Travis developed during his time in Tallahassee.

Uiagalelei got to talk to the FSU quarterback before visiting and saw what Travis told him for himself while on the visit this weekend.

"I talked to him on the phone before I came here. He's a great dude, a great person, a great player. He said great things about Florida State. Everybody I talked to has only said great things about Florida State. When I came here, that's all I saw was great things about the program, how they run the program. You can tell these guys mean what they say..." Uiagalelei said. "I think (Travis has) done a great job. I think his transition from when he first got here to now is great. I think Jordan Travis is a great player. I think the last two years, you can tell that he's been on fire. They've done a really great job of developing Jordan Travis and him becoming the player he was...

"I think that speaks volumes to the way they run the quarterback here and how they run the offense here."

Uiagalelei was the second transfer quarterback target to visit FSU this week after Washington State transfer Cam Ward visited earlier in the week.

Uiagalelei left his FSU visit Sunday afternoon to head home with no additional visits set up at this time. As for what's next?

"For me, I have no clue. I'm just taking it day by day, keeping that close to my family," Uiagalelei said. "I definitely like Florida State a lot. They've done a really good job and I'm thankful for the opportunity of coach Norvell bringing me in here. It was a great weekend."