From the Left Coast to the “Football Belt,” two California transplants clash in a huge early-season game.
It’s Clemson’s D.J. Uiagalelei (oo-ee-ANH-gah-ley-lay) v. Georgia’s J.T. Daniels on Saturday, September 4, 7:30p, at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, NC. Both QBs are prime-time players.
Uiagalelei in action
In 2020, Uiagalelei passed for 914 yards and five touchdowns in a two-game fill-in role for Trevor Lawrence (COVID), who is now with the NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars. In a double-overtime classic v. fourth-ranked Notre Dame, Uiagalelei passed for 439 yards on 44 attempts and two touchdowns, and he also rushed for one touchdown in a losing cause, 47-40. In the following game v. Boston College, Uiagalelei racked up 342 yards, two touchdowns on 41 attempts, and one rushing TD in a 34-28 win in Death Valley.
On September 4, he’ll go up against his more seasoned counterpart in Georgia Bulldog quarterback, J.T. Daniels. It will be the third time the two have gone up against each other. The previous meetings came in 2017 when both players were Southern California high school phenoms. Daniels’ Mater Dei High School won both contests, besting Uiagalelei’s John Bosco Prep during the regular season and, again, in the post-season. The second win enabled Mater Dei to claim the mythical national high school championship.
Courtesy DawgPost
Daniels then matriculated to Southern Cal, where, as a freshman in 2018, he threw for a cool 2,672 yards and 14 touchdowns (10 interceptions) in 11 games. After suffering an injury in 2019, he returned in 2020 to toss 10 touchdowns (119 attempts) for 1,231 yards in four games. But Daniels never regained his starting position and transferred to UGA.
Bulldawg Nation is glad he did.
The big question now is whether Daniels can string three wins in a row against his now-Clemson rival, Uiagalelei. The winner–no matter who it is–will have an inside track to college football’s Final Four and, with that, a shot at a national collegiate crown. It’s ACC (Clemson) v. SEC (Georgia) as D.J. goes up against J.T.
Watch it on ABC.
