It was an embarrassing performance for the Florida State Seminoles during their 24-21 loss to the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. Going into that game as ten-point favorites, Florida State was by far the more talented and deeper team on paper. It’s too bad that games aren’t played on paper.

The Seminoles offense was an issue during this contest, led by former Clemson and Oregon State signal caller DJ Uiagalelei. Coming off of the loss, the quarterback shared a large brunt of the blame. Just how much was that blame warranted?

Just how good or bad was DJU?

The narrative coming out of the loss was that Uiagalelei was bad against Georgia Tech, and that opinion seems quite hyperbolic in a vacuum. The former Clemson and Oregon State passer finished 19/27 for 193 yards through the air, which is a solid day on paper. As you know, context can be lost with numbers if not used properly.

After diving deep into the All 22, two things are certain. One, Uiagalelei definitely wasn’t as bad as the perception would say. In fact, the word solid would adequately quantify his performance. For the most part, he was on time and accurate. Uiagalelei played well within the system and did allow for some of the Seminole skill position players to have opportunities in space.

The second key takeaway, however, was that it was clearly the first game of the season and Uiagalelei was uncomfortable at times. His timing was a tick slow at times, and general field vision was inconsistent. There is reason for optimism for improvements moving forward. Big plays were absent during this contest, but that wasn’t really the fault of Uiagalelei. That should come with comfort.

Rest of the offense

The skill positions were by far the biggest area of weakness in this football game compared to what it was in 2023. Florida State brought back an experienced offensive line, and while it wasn’t great on Saturday, it was solid enough to come out with a victory. Georgia Tech came in as the aggressor defensively, clearly not having respect for the Seminole skill positions to hurt them, and they were correct.

For the most part, Uiagalelei was able to get skill position players an opportunity to make plays in increased space. After seeing some early big plays from Roydell Williams, Lawrance Toafili, and Jaylin Lucas, explosive plays were hard to come by. The running back group showed some potential, while the wide receivers were extremely underwhelming.

After losing Keon Coleman and Johnny Wilson, the wide receiver position came in with major question marks. That was by far the weakest position group. True sophomore Hykeem Williams did not play in the football game, but otherwise, it was a full cast of pass catchers.

Former Alabama wide receiver Malik Benson was easily the Seminoles most complete pass catcher, making a few quality receptions, but lacking explosive ability. It was a rough game for Ja’Khi Douglas, who wasn’t able to capitalize on a couple of opportunities. Former LSU transfer Jalen Brown was invisible during the contest, as was the majority of the room. It was a huge deficiency for the offense.

Wrong place at the wrong time

Uiagalelei’s function in this offense is to be a facilitator. Offensive coordinator Alex Adkins didn’t ask him to be a hero, and for the most part, Uiagalelei played his role well. Plays were on the table, but they just weren’t made enough consistently.

Is that the fault of Uiagalelei? You can only do what the offense asks of you. The main issue might simply be that he is the wrong quarterback for this team. After losing so much talent from the offense a year ago, and suffering so much turnover, the better option may have been to go out and find a true playmaker at the position, someone who can make more out of nothing.

That isn’t Uiagalelei, who might simply be a victim of situation and unrealistic expectations. Florida State didn’t ask for the five-star talent he was billed coming out of St. John Bosco. They asked for what he has been the last four seasons in college, and that’s what they got on Saturday. If they expected an elite player, that is a Seminoles error.