Clemson transfer quarterback DJ Uiagalelei announces commitment to Oregon State

It’s official. Former Clemson quarterback DJ Uiagalelei has announced his commitment to Oregon State.

Uiagalelei entered the transfer portal Dec. 5 after three years with the Tigers, starting out as the backup to Trevor Lawrence and taking over as the starter for the last two seasons. He threw for 5,681 yards, 36 touchdowns and 17 interceptions in that time while also contributing 913 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns on the ground.

This year was an up-and-down campaign for Uiagalelei. He threw for 2,521 yards, 22 touchdowns and seven interceptions, but found himself on the bench during the ACC Championship when freshman Cade Klubnik entered the game.

Now, he’s heading to Oregon State, as On3’s Pete Nakos and Matt Zenitz confirmed Dec. 23. He’s joining a Beavers program that ranked 11th in the Pac-12 in passing offense in 2021, averaging just 199.5 yards per game. The Beavers’ run game is a big part of the scheme, though, as they ranked fourth in the Pac-12 with 196.5 rushing yards per game.

Next stop. . . Corvallis 🥷🏿 #TMC🏁 pic.twitter.com/9ymKFKqdUa

— DJ Uiagalelei (@DJUiagalelei) December 24, 2022

Uiagalelei played high school football at Bellflower (Calif.) St. John Bosco, where he was a five-star prospect. He was the No. 12 overall recruit and No. 2 in the 2020 cycle, according to the On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

To keep up with the latest players on the move, check out On3’s Transfer Portal wire. 

Transfer portal background information

The NCAA Transfer Portal, which covers every NCAA sport at the Division I, II and III levels, is a private database with names of student-athletes who wish to transfer. It is not accessible to the public.

The process of entering the portal starts with the school’s compliance office. Once a player provides written notification of an intent to transfer, the office enters the player’s name in the database and everything is off and running. The compliance office has 48 hours to comply with the player’s request.

Once a player’s name shows up in the portal, other schools can contact the player. Players can change their minds at any point and withdraw from the portal. However, once a player enters the portal, the current scholarship is no longer valid. In other words, if a player enters the portal but decides to stay, the school does not have to cover their scholarship.

The database is a normal database, sortable by a variety of topics, including (of course) sport and name. A player’s individual entry includes basic details such as contact info, whether the player was on scholarship and whether the player is transferring as a graduate student.

A player can ask for a “do not contact” tag on the report. In those instances, the players don’t want contact from schools unless they initiate the communication.

Track transfer portal activity

While the NCAA transfer portal database is private, the On3 Network has streamlined the reporting process tracking player movement.

If you find yourself asking, ‘How can I track transfer portal activity?’ our well-established network of reporters and contacts across college athletics keeps you up to speed in several ways, from articles written about players as they enter and exit the transfer portal or find their new destination, to our social media channels, to our Transfer Portal Wire.

The transfer portal wire provides a real-time feed of player activity, including basic player profile information, transfer portal ranking and original On3 Consensus recruiting ranking, as well as NIL valuation (name, image and likeness).

The On3 Transfer Portal Instagram account and senior national college football reporter Matt Zenitz’s Twitter account are excellent resources to stay up to date with the latest moves.