5-star QB DJ Uiagalelei announced his commitment to Clemson football this past weekend. What will that mean for the Tigers moving forward?
The 2020 Clemson football recruiting class has a chance to be the best in the history in all of CFB.
One of the centerpieces of the class is 5-star QB DJ Uiagalelei, who announced his commitment to the Tigers this past weekend.
With the addition of Uiagalelei, the Tigers now have assembled several talented quarterbacks that will all be on campus together beginning in the 2020 season.
How will the addition of Uiagalelei potentially affect the Clemson football QB room? That’s been the question we’ve received several times since the announcement just a few days ago.
Analysis:
The Tigers have Trevor Lawrence etched in as the starting quarterback for the next two seasons. Behind him is Chase Brice, Taisun Phommachanh and Ben Batson this year.
Uiagalelei will join the quarterbacks in 2020.
During 2020 and especially in 2021, I expect that you will see two things: Competition and Attrition.
Uiagalelei is going to bring the best out of Chase Brice and Taisun Phommachanh, and the same thing can be said in reverse. He’s not coming to redshirt his freshman season. He has the talent to play and to have a prominent role. Though Trevor Lawrence will be the starter in 2020, I think we will see the competition shake out during that season.
You’ll see a three-man battle for the second-string spot between Brice, Phommachanh and Uiagalelei.
Most likely, the player that finishes third in the battle will transfer and that will leave the other two guys a chance to battle for the starting position in 2021.
Chase Brice could conceivably graduate and transfer if he wanted to go down that road for one season. I will also say this about Brice: If he did decide to stay at Clemson and never started a game, he’d still be given a chance in the NFL.
Another option is for Phommachanh to potentially change positions. He is a talented athlete that could excel at wide receiver or in the defensive backfield.
In the end, I’m of the opinion that Uiagalelei is going to be the starter following Trevor Lawrence. But, there’s still a long way between now and the end of Trevor Lawrence’s Clemson football tenure.
For now, I suggest that fans trust the coaching staff and enjoy the ride because everything will fall into place exactly as it should.