Cade Klubnik Key for Clemson Tigers Against Virginia Tech

The 19th-ranked Clemson Tigers will be heading to Blacksburg this Saturday for a highly anticipated matchup with the Virginia Tech Hokies. Clemson opened up the season with a tough matchup with Georgia. The Tigers played close in the first half, but ultimately fell to the ‘Dawgs 34-3. Clemson quickly righted itself, winning the next 6 ball games. They fell last Saturday to Louisville and may have played themselves out of the college football playoff.

Central to the Clemson fortunes has been their QB1, Cade Klubnik. Klubnik was a highly recruited 5-star recruit from Austin, TX. His career at Clemson could be described as spotty. He has flashed brilliance, but inconsistency has been a real issue. The first game against Georgia was not his best, but he was under duress for most of that game. He finished 18-for29 for 142 yards with a pick. In his defense, most quarterbacks struggle against a nasty Georgia defense (ask Quinn Ewers).

Astern the tough opener, Klubnik found his stride. In the next 6 games, Klubnik put up some better-than-decent numbers. Perhaps his best game of 2024 was the matchup with Stanford, in which he tossed 4 touchdown passes. Klubnik currently ranks 6th in the A.C.C. in yardage with 2,064.

In comparison, Kyron Drones is 14th in league passing yard totals. Clemson trailed most of the game against Louisville, and Klubnik aired it out an amazing 56 times. I can assure you even head coach Dabo Swinney would say that pass attempt number is way too high. If the Hokies can make Klubnik uncomfortable early and often, expect the Tigers to lean on the run game.

If Klubnik can stay on schedule, the Hokies secondary will be tested. The Hokies have performed very well against the pass this season. They are currently 3rd in the A.C.C., allowing a paltry 205.6 yards per game. As Klubnik goes, so goes the Tigers, so the Hokies defense needs to be ready.