Dabo Swinney and Clemson’s football team are counting on their quarterback, Cade Klubnik, to step up in 2024 and help lead this Clemson offense back to a place where the Tigers can contend for a National Championship.
As a sophomore starting for the first time last season, there was a lot of pressure on him, but the team didn’t quite meet expectations. Maybe we expected too much too soon, especially with a new offensive coordinator, Garrett Riley, joining the program after helping bring TCU on a dream run to the National Championship. 2023 wasn’t the year for Clemson’s offense, but that doesn’t mean 2024 can’t be.
Klubnik has had time to grow and improve during this offseason. He’s been working hard, and the team is hopeful for better results this year.
Recently, 247Sports released their post-spring ACC quarterback rankings, with Klubnik landing at No. 7.
Cade Klubnik had the fewest yards per attempt (6.3) for a starter in the ACC last fall, a sign that much of the Clemson passing attack was horizontal with lots of short routes and checkdowns. That could be a result of trust issues or the fact the lack of playmakers on the outside shrunk Garrett Riley’s playbook considerably. Six touchdown passes over his final six starts is a bit concerning and with no player behind Klubnik to truly push for reps, there’s pressure on him getting the most out of his five-star ability this fall.
In 2023, Klubnik completed 290-of-454 passes for 19 touchdowns and nine interceptions, as well as having rushed 125 times for 182 yards and four touchdowns in 974 snaps over 12 games (all starts). It was a solid season for the young quarterback, but not enough for the Tigers’ to contend for a National Championship.
While some of that was directly on Klubnik, more than just one player plays in a football game. If the pieces around Klubnik perform, he could be in for a massive season.