Dabo Swinney is no stranger to bringing highly touted quarterbacks into his program.
D.J. Uiagalelei, Clemson’s current starter, was a five-star prospect coming out of the California prep ranks in the Tigers’ 2020 recruiting class. His predecessor, Trevor Lawrence, was a former No. 1 overall recruit who went on to be the top overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. Before that, there was Deshaun Watson, another blue-chip recruit turned first-round draft pick. Even Hunter Johnson, who left for Northwestern once Lawrence permanently won the job in 2018 and has since transferred back, was a five-star coup at the time.
Welcome to the club, Cade Klubnik.
Ranked the No. 1 high school quarterback for the 2022 recruiting cycle in the 247Sports Composite, Klubnik was the crown jewel of Clemson’s most recent signing haul. And while his college career is in the crawling stage – the 6-foot-2, 185-pounder went through his first practice at Clemson on Wednesday – he’s getting an early start on it as a mid-year enrollee the same way Watson, Lawrence and Uiagalelei did.
Swinney said that makes for a simple set of short-term expectations this spring for his latest prized signal caller.
“The expectation is he comes in here and he’s the guy we recruited,” Swinney said. “He’s a leader, he’s a detailed preparer, he takes the field with great preparation day in and day in, he learns from his mistakes and he gets better as he goes. That was the expectation for Deshaun. That was the expectation for Trevor and the expectation for D.J. No different. So just show up and let’s go see where he is.”
Watson, Lawrence and Uiagalelei all started multiple games during their true freshmen seasons, though Uiagalelei made his two starts in 2020 out of need after Lawrence tested positive for COVID-19 during that season. Whether Klubnik does the same remains to be seen.
But Swinney said he brought back Johnson, who played just 11 games in three seasons at Northwestern, primarily to provide depth at a position where former walk-ons Hunter Helms and Billy Wiles are the only other scholarship options. So Klubnik is likely the most realistic threat to create competition for Uiagalelei, who had an inconsistent first season as Clemson’s full-time starter that included more interceptions (10) than touchdown passes (9).
While Uiagalelei, who opened the spring at a slimmer 240 pounds, needs to be better, Swinney again reiterated the supporting cast around him needs to pick up its game, too.
“I’ve never had a young quarterback that didn’t make mistakes,” Swinney said. “The difference between Deshaun and Trevor was D.J.’s mistakes were magnified. We weren’t near as good around him as we were with those other two dudes.”
Still, Klubnik’s progress this spring is worth monitoring. Johnson won’t arrive back on campus until the summer, so Klubnik will be thrown into the fire quickly. He took some reps with Uiagalelei on Wednesday.
“The good news is he’s going to get a lot of reps,” Swinney said. “So right out of the gate here, he’ll get a ton of work. I’m excited to see him on the field.”
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