While there’s always a game plan in place, you never know what Saturday may bring come kickoff and Saturday was no different for Clemson’s Cade Klubnik. The true freshman came into the Tigers’ matchup against Syracuse knowing D.J. Uiagalelei would be the starter, but when Uiagalelei continued to struggle late, it was time for Klubnik to shine… and shine he did.
“That’s what you hope for,” offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Brandon Streeter said. “When you have a guy that is special like Cade that you know can spark some energy into the group and really just get it going. That’s the sign of a kid that’s number one just ready to go and that isn’t scared of the moment at all. Just excited for him and for him to finally be able to get out onto the field. He hadn’t had a ton of game experience and for him to go out there with a lot of confidence and do some good things, I was really pleased.”
For Klubnik, his confidence comes from the hours and days of preparation leading up to this point. So, when his name was called late versus Syracuse, the Texas native was ready to go and soak it all in.
“Coach [Dabo] Swinney’s been saying, ‘Confidence comes from preparation,’” Klubnik said. “Coach Swinney, coach Streeter and that whole QB room, we’ve been preparing all week and we prepare every week like every single one of us is going to start the game, so I went into it excited to get my moment.”
And what a moment he had. While Klubnik came away with just 2-for-4 completions and 19 yards passing along with six carries for 15 yards, the backup led the Tigers to two back-to-back touchdown drives in the fourth quarter to take the lead back for good and save Clemson’s undefeated season — a feat Klubnik is still coming to terms with following their latest win over the Orange, but one thing he is thankful for is the constant love and support from his starter in Uiagalelei.
“D.J.’s such a loving guy and our relationship is just so tight,” the former five-star prospect said. “I think a lot of people see it more as a competition, but it’s really a loving opportunity that we have for each other. He’s been able to push me in so many ways and I’ve been able to do the same for him. I just try to be the best leader I can be in every opportunity. He just gave me some last-minute tips and said, ‘Just go score,’ and just had full trust in me. Just super thankful for him for that.”
Now with his own special Clemson moment in the rearview, Klubnik is reminded of the great privilege it is to don the paw and Clemson orange while being surrounded by people who push him to be the best version of himself — a reality he won’t ever take for granted.
“I’m just so thankful to be here,” Klubnik said. “I think there’s a lot of people that would love to play football at Clemson and I’m just so thankful for this opportunity to even be here, to wear the paw on my helmet, the orange uniform and to be around such great people every day. I kinda needed to just take a step back and enjoy every moment that I have. You only play at most, 16 days out of every 365 days in a year. You prepared the entire year for those 16 days and it’s sometimes not about those 16 days, it’s about everything else. It’s been so fun to just soak it all in these past 10 minutes. It’s been really cool.”
Dear Old Clemson is excited to announce a limited edition football and poster signed by Clemson’s Avengers.
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