A situation the entire college football community will be monitoring over the next few months is Clemson’s quarterback battle between returning starter DJ Uiagalelei and highly touted freshman Cade Klubnik.
A QB battle is something Clemson has seen as recently as 2018 when then-freshman Trevor Lawrence beat out Kelly Bryant for the starting job. Wondering how that decision worked out for the Tigers? The season ended with Clemson finishing 15-0, completing their perfect season with a 44-16 win over one of the best college football rosters of all time in 18′ Alabama.
It’s safe to say things went well when Swinney and the team decided to roll with Lawrence. It looks like we could see a similar situation in 2022.
ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg recently broke down the current situation of Clemson’s QB battle.
Here’s what Rittenberg had to say:
Returning starter: D.J. Uiagalelei
Candidates: Uiagalelei, Cade Klubnik
Before the 2021 season, few thought Uiagalelei would be here, fighting off an incoming freshman to keep a job that was set up to be his after Trevor Lawrence‘s NFL departure. But little about last fall went as planned for Clemson’s offense or Uiagalelei, who completed 55.6% of his attempts with more interceptions (10) than touchdown passes (9). He looked lost at times while leading an offense that plummeted to 82nd nationally in scoring. Longtime playcaller Tony Elliott has gone to Virginia, although Clemson maintained continuity by promoting quarterbacks coach Brandon Streeter to offensive coordinator.
Uiagalelei competed this spring with Klubnik, an Austin, Texas, product rated as ESPN’s top dual-threat quarterback and No. 29 overall recruit in the 2022 class. Klubnik looked capable during practices and threw a touchdown pass in Clemson’s spring game. “I wouldn’t say it’s a battle yet, but he’s pushing him,” Streeter said of Klubnik and Uiagalelei, before adding, “There’s no automatic starter.” A slimmed-down Uiagalelei also had good moments during spring ball but struggled with his accuracy in the spring game (17-of-36 pass attempts with an interception). Still, coach Dabo Swinney said Uiagalelei is “definitely our starter” and didn’t do anything during the spring session to lose the job.
Week 1 starter prediction: Uiagalelei. Swinney is all about continuity, as he showed in promoting Streeter and Wes Goodwin to replace longtime coordinators Elliott and Brent Venables. He seems unlikely to abandon Uiagalelei despite last season’s struggles. Unless Klubnik shows in August that he’s undeniably better, Uiagalelei should get the first opportunity during a manageable opening stretch (Georgia Tech, Furman, Louisiana Tech).
Rittenberg feels spot on with his assessment of the situation. Just like the situation back in 2018 where Kelly Bryant opened the year as the starter
I, too, expect to see the same here with Uiagalelei.
The battle will be all offseason, but the most critical time will be the Tigers’ first few games.
If Uiagalelei can’t take advantage of getting the first shot under center, Klubnik will have a serious chance of taking over.
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