This analyst recently gave his thoughts on Clemson going into the 2022 football season.
Rich Cirminiello, the Vice President of College Awards for the Maxwell Football Club who is also a frequent contributor to Phil Steele and SportsGrid, joined SportsGridRadio and provided his take on whether Dabo Swinney’s team can bounce back from the 2021 season that saw the Tigers’ streak of consecutive ACC titles and College Football Playoff apperances end at six.
“That defense, to me, will be like a poor man’s Georgia of 2021. I think they could be that good,” Cirminiello said. “And that’s why it’s so curious to me that Dabo loses his co-offensive coordinator, Tony Elliott, to Virginia, now the head coach down in Charlottesville, but no changes at quarterback. D.J. (Uiagalelei) looked OK in the spring. It doesn’t appear that he’s made any great strides from last season. Was quite frankly horrible as a sophomore. Now, they got Cade Klubnik from Texas, the five-star recruit, but I’m not sure if Dabo’s going to try to make a return to the ACC penthouse with a true freshman quarterback.”
Cirminiello added that it’s “a real mystery” to him why Swinney and the Tigers didn’t add an experienced quarterback via the transfer portal, though Clemson did in fact bring in a veteran transfer signal-caller in Hunter Johnson, who has returned to Tiger Town after beginning his career there in 2017 before playing the last three seasons at Northwestern.
“So, the fact that Dabo did not go out — with all the quarterbacks floating around the transfer portal, all the veterans that were out there — the fact that he did not pluck someone with experience to come to Clemson, even if it’s an insurance policy, get a quarterback in case D.J. or Cade Klubnik are not ready, is a real mystery to me,” Cirminiello said.
Added Cirminiello: “Now, I think they win a lot of games because of that defense. But offensively, you’ve got Will Shipley out of the backfield. But man, they need a hell of a lot out of the quarterback play this year.”
Can Clemson bounce back from last years lack luster season?@RichCirminiello shares his thoughts on the Clemson Tigers offense for this upcoming college football season!#Clemson #NCAAF pic.twitter.com/lRvmRJGH6Q
— SportsGridRadio (@SportsGridRadio) July 9, 2022
Dear Old Clemson’s first event is July 24. Now there is a new way to support Clemson student athletes. Come out and meet the freshmen football players at this meet and greet autograph session. If you sign up for certain club levels you get free access to all Dear Old Clemson events. Purchase your tickets today at Dear Old Clemson.
