ORLANDO, Fla. — The Clemson Tigers are not only the favorites to repeat as ACC champions (+120 at BetMGM), but represent a real threat to win the national championship this season (+1600). Their returning talent is a big reason for the optimism around Clemson, with senior quarterback Cade Klubnik headlining the list of players coming back for the 2025 season.
Klubnik was a five-star prospect in the Class of 2022, according to 247Sports. Clemson fans expected him to become the to be the next great Tigers quarterback, following the likes of Deshaun Watson and Trevor Lawrence. But some hiccups in his first year as the team’s starter led to questions about whether he was good enough to keep the Tigers at the level they had grown to expect.
Dabo Swinney stuck with Klubnik through his growing pains, and was rewarded with a stellar junior season from his quarterback. Klubnik lead the Tigers to an ACC title and a berth in the College Football Playoff, throwing for 3,639 yards, 36 touchdowns and six interceptions last season. He also added 463 yards and seven touchdowns on the ground.
That performance moved Klubnik back into the upper tier of college quarterbacks entering 2025, earning him a spot on the Deluxe Edition cover of EA Sports College Football 26. Earlier this month Klubnik met with reporters at EA Studios. He discussed the work he’s put in to improve.
Offseason homework
After a rocky sophomore season, Klubnik was looking to improve in the pocket. He turned to two sources in film work that summer. One name might surprise some, but not those that watched the 2021 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers.
“Every summer I normally study a college player, and then a current NFL guy. So last year, I studied senior year [tape] of Bailey Zappe,” Klubnik said. “He had a great year, I mean, I wanted to improve my presence in the pocket, anticipation and just delivery. So I studied him, and I studied just the calmness and coolness of Patrick Mahomes in the pocket. So studied those two guys because that was something I wanted to get better at.”
That film work bore fruit on the field last season, and now Klubnik has a new offseason homework assignment. Going into his senior year, he’s watching film on former Heisman winner and Cincinnati Bengals superstar Joe Burrow.
“From 2019 to be a little more specific, [LSU’s] throwing the ball was just — it was elite,” Klubnik said. “Their vertical game and his ability to escape the pocket but remain a passer is something that I feel like I can do pretty well. So that for sure. But yeah, their play-action schemes, their drop-back schemes and the way he would go through his reads, but stay calm in the pocket.
“We share the same quarterback coach. So a lot of the same fundamentals and mechanics that Jordan [Palmer] teaches us, he does it, you know, very, very elite. So I love to watch somebody who’s better than me, and I don’t want to compare myself to Joe, because he’s one of the best in the league, but just the way that he’s doing stuff mechanically. I would love to try to be like one day.”
College football’s top returning QBs for 2025: Arch Manning just behind Cade Klubnik, Drew Allar before season
Tom Fornelli
Epitome of development
Klubnik points to Burrow, Michael Penix Jr. and Bo Nix as examples of quarterbacks who didn’t find immediate success, but were able to grow throughout their career.
“It’s a developmental game, and it’s a developmental position, for sure,” Klubnik explained. “You got freaks like Caleb Williams and Trevor Lawrence — they’re just gonna come out and they’re just really good right out of the gate. Some guys are like that. But it’s a developmental position for sure, that you got to keep getting better at. There’s a reason that Tom Brady was playing some his best football in year 20-something. It’s kind of how it is, and it’s fun.”
Clemson has hung its hat on player development since Swinney took over the program. That reputation was a big part of Klubnik’s decision to move from Austin, Texas to South Carolina for college.
“I’m so thankful that I’ve been at Clemson for four years now,” Klubnik said. “It’s huge, just because you learn the system over and over and over. It’s like installing the same thing over and over, you’re just going to get better at it. The more you do it, the better you get at it, and the faster you can do it. So I’ve loved being with (offensive coordinator Garrett Riley) in that system.”
In a statement that will surely make Swinney proud, Klubnik even threw in a recruiting pitch for the program.
“What Clemson’s done is develop me. They’ve [made] me better. So like, if I’m a quarterback and I want to go to get better, like Clemson’s place to do it.”
If Klubnik can continue his upward trajectory from last season, everything is on the table: a Heisman Trophy, national title and first-round NFL Draft selection. Time will tell if his hard work pays off for the Tigers.
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