Oregon State QB Uiagalelei, Clemson WR Collins, NC State QB Morris declare plans for transfer portal
Oregon State quarterback DJ Uiagalelei and his former high school and college teammate in Clemson receiver Beaux Collins announced plans to enter the transfer portal.
North Carolina State quarterback MJ Morris said he, too, will join the portal, an announcement coming less than a month after he opted out for the rest of the season to preserve his redshirt option despite being the starter.
It’s the second time Uiagalelei will change schools after playing his first three seasons at Clemson. He left after he got pulled early in the Tigers’ 39-10 victory over North Carolina at the ACC championship game in 2022 in favor of current Clemson starter Cade Klubnik.
Uiagalelei posted his decision on social media, thanking the fans, his coaches and teammates for welcoming him this season. He finished the year seventh in the Pac 12 Conference with 219 yards passing a game. Uiagalelei completed 57.1 % of his throws for 2,638 yards, 21 touchdowns and seven interceptions.
Uiagalelei’s coach at Oregon State, Jonathan Smith, just took over at Michigan State. The Spartans have had three quarterbacks announce their plans to use the portal, meaning every passer who took a snap for the team this season has either entered the portal or said they plan to do so.
Morris issued a statement to On3Sports and posted the statement on social media Thursday. He will have three years of eligibility remaining after an unusual exit from N.C. State.
He was pressed into duty as a true freshman in 2022 due to injuries before being sidelined by his own, then was elevated to the starting role in early October after the Wolfpack struggled offensively with Virginia transfer Brennan Armstrong as the starter.
Morris guided the Wolfpack to three wins in four starts, including against Clemson and Miami, while throwing seven touchdowns and five interceptions. Coach Dave Doeren said he was surprised that Morris opted to sit out the rest of the season after becoming the starter, even as his father Eddie told WRAL-TV in Raleigh that his son wouldn’t transfer.
Yet Armstrong played much better in his return to the starting lineup, helping N.C. State close with five straight wins and reach nine wins.
Also on Thursday, Clemson receiver Collins announced his plan to enter the portal. Collins played two seasons with Uiagalelei at St. John Bosco High School in California and two more with the Tigers.
Collins was third on the team with 38 catches for 510 yards and three touchdowns this season. Collins thanked his family, friends, teammates and coaches for his three years at Clemson on social media.
“After deep thought and consideration, I have plans to enter the transfer portal,” he wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Collins is a 6-foot-3, 210-pound junior from Los Angeles who has started the past 21 games he has played in with the Tigers. He ends his Clemson career with 91 catches for 1,290 yards and 11 touchdowns the past three seasons.
He was injured early in a 31-20 win over then-No. 20 North Carolina with a plantar fascia tear on Nov. 18 and did not play in the team’s final regular-season game at South Carolina this past Saturday.
