Swinney Wants to See 'Big Jump' from Klubnik

One of the biggest keys to any teams success is the play of the quarterback.

Inconsistent play at the position has been one of the factors in Clemson failing to make an appearance in the College Football Playoff the past three seasons, but head coach Dabo Swinney is hopeful some of those struggles are now a thing of the past.

With Cade Klubnik entering his second season as the full-time starter and with the strong finish last season, Swinney has seen a lot more confidence in his quarterback throughout the spring and fall.

“Definitely a lot of confidence coming out of the season,” Swinney said Swinney said during his appearance on the Gramlich & Mac Lain show. “We won five in a row and probably beat our toughest opponents down the stretch. And he went head-to-head against some great quarterbacks and won every matchup.”

Swinney believes there are multiple reasons for Klubnik’s rising confidence level, with one of those being his performance on the Tigers’ game-winning drive against Kentucky in the Gator Bowl. Klubnik hit on all eight of his pass attempts on that drive, including picking up 16 yards on a critical 3rd and 18.

However, another factor is the chemistry he has now been able to build with a wide receiver group that is fully healthy after having been hampered by injury in recent seasons.

“Then that drive at the end and you saw what we are capable of doing,” Swinney added. “We had Antonio back for that game, who had been out since game three. We had Adam Randall, who has found his confidence again. We had Tyler Brown coming back. (Troy) Stellato… people don’t realize he didn’t even get cleared to play until Tuesday of Duke week. This is the first summer that he’s had.”

“So that confidence in that group, you saw really grow and emerge down the stretch in some big games. To beat Notre Dame that punched us in the mouth the year before, to see us dominate that game. To beat a good Georgia Tech, to beat Drake Maye and North Carolina. To go to South Carolina and win and then to win that bowl game, that was big for us. And how we won it, I think created a lot of momentum for Cade.”

While Swinney was mostly pleased with the growth he saw from Klubnik down the stretch last season, the head coach also knows that if his team is going to experience the kind of success they want to have in 2024, his quarterback needs to take a big step forward in his development.

Swinney insists that Klubnik has put in the work and if the spring, summer and fall are any indications, the head coach thinks that jump is coming.

“You saw a lot of growth from him throughout the season,” Swinney said. “But the biggest thing with him, he was a first-year starter, and you just want to see a big jump. In particular, where is that? Well first and foremost, continue his physical development and he has done that. When you see him, he looks great. Just physically maturing as a young man as a young player does. We are so quick to just crucify young players if they are not All-Americans as first-year starters. And that’s a Haley’s Comet type of situation. Most guys, if they have the talent, the ability and the work ethic and the character, football character in particular, they are going to get better because they are going to do what they need to do.”

“But this kid, Klubnik, he is wired the right way. He is made of the right stuff. He’s got that talent and he’s got that work ethic. Physically he has put the work in, mentally he has put the work in. He is very sharp. The guy understands. He is a football junkie, he loves it.”

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