Clemson’s ACC Championship game looked a lot like DJ Uiagelelei’s previous games. Uiagelelei started the game with a ball thrown in the ground, a short completed pass, and airmailed his third pass. His next series resulted in no Clemson points as the Tigers trailed 7-0 to North Carolina as the offense had completely regressed to the September 2021 version.
One that couldn’t move the ball against anyone they played.
Finally, Dabo Swinney made the switch Clemson fans had been begging for.
5-Star QB Cade Klubnik came in and ignited the Clemson offense with an instant TD. Everything he did look so polished, it begs the question what was Dabo thinking sitting him so long? We’ll probably never know the answer.
Here are some of the numbers from Klubnik…
Cade Klubnik went 15-15 for 107 yards on passes thrown fewer than 5 yards downfield, the most such completions without an incompletion by a Clemson QB in the last 15 seasons via @ESPNStatsInfo
— Andrea Adelson (@aadelsonESPN) December 4, 2022
Suddenly the outlook for Clemson’s Orange Bowl game with Tennesee looks very intriguing. Klubnik will now get the first-team reps, and Clemson will prepare for a Tennesee without Hendon Hooker or their OC.
The Tigers haven’t beaten a OOC top-10 team since 2019.
This is a big opportunity for the Tigers to build towards the 2023 season with Klubnik as QB.
It is what Clemson fans have been waiting for weeks if not months.
