DJ Uiagalelei's Lackluster Florida State Debut Led to Lots of Jokes

Uiagalelei struggled in his debut for the Seminoles.

Apr 20, 2024; Tallahassee, Florida, USA; Florida State Seminoles quarterback DJ Uiagalelei (4) during the Spring Showcase at Doak S. Campbell Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Melina Myers-USA TODAY Sports / Melina Myers-USA TODAY Sports

Georgia Tech upset No. 10 Florida State on Saturday in Dublin to kick off the 2024-25 college football season. The Yellow Jackets' 24-21 victory was partly due to their ability to stymie FSU's offense. That was largely because of a mediocre game from the Seminoles' new quarterback, DJ Uiagalelei.

Uiagalelei transferred to Florida State after spending the 2023-24 season at Oregon State. Before that, he played at Clemson for three seasons. He never quite lived up to the lofty billing as a five-star prep recruit out of California, and his outing on Saturday didn't do much to change his image.

On the afternoon, Uiagalelei completed 19 of 27 passes for 193 yards, with no touchdowns and no interceptions. While on paper that doesn't look terrible, those numbers were bolstered by some fourth quarter completions.

For most of the game, Uiagalelei struggled mightily when throwing the ball downfield and was content to toss it around the line of scrimmage. In the first half, he completed 12 of 14 passes for a paltry 96 yards. He averaged -0.1 air yards per attempt.

Fans ruthlessly trolled Uiagalelei after FSU's stunning upset loss.

Billy, this is DJ Uiagalelei, he’s built like a linebacker with the speed and athleticism of a Running back. He is the ultimate weapon at QB.

His only defect, in 1904 the forward pass was invented pic.twitter.com/iyAnDUZqoz

— Nick Perkins (@NickyPerkss) August 24, 2024

This team lost almost every good player they had, brought in DJU to be their QB and ended their season with a 60-point loss, and you idiots ranked them No. 10 in the country.

— Brandon Walker (@BFW) August 24, 2024

“Sir, another team has fallen for the DJ Uiangalelei hype” pic.twitter.com/QAYKBCS5b2

— Will (@WillTalksBall) August 24, 2024

“DJ we have to throw the ball more then 5 yards down the field”

DJ pic.twitter.com/qAfDvHwaJL

— Adam (@adamdropsbombs) August 24, 2024

DJ Uiagalelei is why we let all customers know that results may vary when you use our service

— Transfer Portal (@NCAAPortal) August 24, 2024

DJ Uiagalelei if 2 yard check down passes were illegal pic.twitter.com/rtaFluRt8d

— General Will (@GamecockWill69) August 24, 2024

Dabo swinney looking at dj uiagalelei parents right now pic.twitter.com/L8nVCVXYqZ

— John (@iam_johnw) August 24, 2024

"man this kid can rip it" I think to myself as DJ Uiagalalei sails a pass five yards over his receiver's head out of bounds for the fifth time today

— Matt Hinton (@MattRHinton) August 24, 2024

DJ U when he has to throw beyond the line of scrimmage pic.twitter.com/yGu45eYwJK

— Jonathan Williams (@Dr_JWill) August 24, 2024

DJ Uiagalelei needs to make the choice if he wants to a Bloodline member or a Flag Football Gold medalist

— Vontel (@DVontelJ) August 24, 2024

FSU receivers getting lined up to run routes for DJ https://t.co/hfnZx90VVk pic.twitter.com/ue3K1Kn3Mb

— Ryan (@Ryanmcc_9) August 24, 2024

It was a rough start to Uiagalelei's Florida State tenure. The Seminoles have to hope things improve quickly or it'll be a long season.