During his media availability Friday afternoon as the Clemson football team kicked off fall camp, Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney had praise for talented true freshman quarterback Cade Klubnik.
The former five-star prospect and No. 1-ranked signal-caller in the 2022 recruiting class enrolled early in January and went through spring practice, and Swinney is very pleased with how he did over the spring and summer and how he’s bought in to the Tigers’ culture.
“I’m really proud of that kid, man. I really am,” Swinney said. “I’m really glad we have him. He’s been a lot of fun to coach. To me, a guy like Cade is one of those things that, that’s why you coach… Our culture here, it’s going to pull you one way or another, and it’s going to squeeze you up or out, one of the two. And man, he’s allowed it to really squeeze him up. He’s had a great spring and a great summer and just really bought in to what it takes at Clemson and what it takes for him, I think, to reach his potential. So, he’s going to be a heck of a player.”
Swinney was asked that given the fact Klubnik went through the spring, should he need to be ready to play early in the upcoming season, if Swinney feels like he’ll be in that position.
“Absolutely,” Swinney said. “That’s why we put him second the day he got here. We really don’t waste a rep, we don’t waste a minute. He needed all that work, and obviously mentally he’s come a long way since January. I think he was 179 pounds or something like that when he got here, and now he’s 197. So physically he had a lot of work to do and he’s done it. But he’s in a great spot, and I don’t think there’s any question — he’ll be ready.”
Klubnik heads into his freshman season as a Tiger having completed 70.0 percent of his career passes in high school for 7,426 yards and 86 touchdowns vs. just seven interceptions. As a senior in 2021, he completed 71.3 percent of his passes for 3,251 yards and 43 touchdowns against just three interceptions.
Come out to support Clemson softball at Dear Old Clemson’s second event which is set for August 27 at the Madren Conference Center. Clemson returns one of the top teams in the nation and adds some new talent to the mix. If you sign up for certain club levels you get free access to all Dear Old Clemson events or purchase your tickets today at Dear Old Clemson.
