Where was DJ Uiagalelei in 247Sports' ACC QB rankings? |
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That's the preseason mode among national outlets for Clemson's quarterbacks, with returning starter DJ Uiagalelei under the microscope after sophomore struggles. 247Sports ranked Uiagalelei eighth out of the ACC's 14 projected starters preseason on Tuesday. "How deep is the ACC at quarterback this season? Clemson's starting quarterback is inside the top five of the preseason Heisman frontrunner list and didn't make the top-half of the league's individual position rankings," 247Sports' Brad Crawford said. "However, considering Uiagalelei's perceived value in the awards race despite last season's fall from grace at Clemson, he had to be inside our preseason top 25 at the position and given his potential upside as a key piece of a national championship-contending team, there's worth here. There's a reason the 6-foot-4, 250-pounder was a five-star recruit and has been mentioned as a possible first-rounder next spring with a stellar junior campaign." NC State's Devin Leary was atop the ACC rankings, followed by Miami's Tyler Van Dyke and Louisville's Malik Cunningham, who are all on Clemson's 2022 slate. Clemson did not have a QB ranked among the top-50 of Pro Football Focus' preseason national rankings earlier this week. As referenced by Crawford, Uiagalelei was ranked 24th by 247Sports preseason. Uiagalelei passed for 342 yards in his starting debut in a comeback win over Boston College as a freshman, and he turned around threw for 439 yards in a record for an opposing QB at Notre Dame. In his first full season as a starter last year, Uiagalelei played through some injuries to a No. 97 ranking nationally in ESPN's QBR metric with nine touchdown passes to 10 interceptions. Clemson signed the No. 1-rated QB for the 2022 class with spring enrollee Cade Klubnik and former 5-star prospect Hunter Johnson transferred in from Northwestern for his final season as well.
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