Former Clemson quarterback DJ Uiagalelei is enjoying his new college home so far — and the anonymity that has come with it.

Uiagalelei, who transferred to Oregon State this offseason, was a recognizable figure during his time in Tiger Town. But apparently, that isn’t really the case now that he’s in Corvallis.

“It’s something different from Clemson where every player, they recognize you, come up to you, ask you for a picture,” Uiagalelei said in an interview with ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg. “Here, it’s nice, I just walk around, me and my girlfriend, go eat, no one knows who I am. It’s great.”

Uiagalelei spent the last three seasons playing for the Tigers, compiling a 22-6 record as the team’s starter. As a junior in 2022, he completed 62.1 percent of his passes for 2,521 yards and 22 touchdowns with seven interceptions while also rushing for 545 yards and seven more scores.

The California native started the first 13 games for Clemson last season, including the ACC Championship Game against North Carolina, but lost his starting job in that game after being replaced by Cade Klubnik.

Uiagalelei then officially entered his name into the NCAA transfer portal back on Dec. 5 before announcing on Christmas Eve that he would be heading to Oregon State.

A big reason Uiagalelei decided to take his talents to Oregon State is because of the pro-style offense that he sees as a great fit for him.

“I wanted to go somewhere where the scheme is going to fit me,” Uiagalelei said. “I wanted to go somewhere where they’re going to let me be who I am as a player, let me play free, and let me go out there and just cut it loose. Just somewhere where I can do what I wanted to do.”

“I wanted to be able to do play-action, throw a lot of deep balls, deep posts, scheme-wise, a little bit more complex than I was doing at Clemson, a little more NFL-style,” Uiagalelei added in the interview with Rittenberg. “I looked at Will Levis. A lot of people have him going first round, because he’s a good player, but also because he played in a pro-style system.”

A former five-star prospect, Uiagalelei completed 59.8 percent of his passes for 5,681 yards and 36 touchdowns with 17 interceptions in 36 games (28 starts) for the Tigers from 2020-22. He also recorded 275 career carries for 913 yards and 15 touchdowns on the ground.

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