Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney could potentially be preparing to take on SMU this weekend in Death Valley without his quarterback, Cade Klubnik. The Tigers are currently 3-3, and are 1-2 at Death Valley this season.
Saturday’s contest is a rematch of the 2024 ACC Championship Game, where Clemson took an unlikely victory when the match seemed almost guaranteed to go to overtime. The Tigers managed to secure a victory following a 17-yard pass from Klubnik to set up a field goal.
Why Did Dabo Swinney Admit To Losing His Mind Over Cade Klubnik During His First Season?
On a recent episode of “I Am Athlete,” the Clemson head coach joined the panel. During this episode, Swinney revealed some initial challenges with his quarterback. Klubnik joined Clemson from Westlake High School, spending his entire college career in Death Valley.
“Now he’s in a skillet, because you’re at Clemson. And he’s turning the ball over too much, he’s taking too many TFLs, too many sacks. He refuses to use his legs, and I’m about to lose my mind, like it’s 2nd and 10, and then it’s 3rd and 10.” Swinney shared.
In his first season at Clemson, Klubnik was primarily a backup to starting quarterback DJ Uiagalelei. After Uiagalelei entered the transfer portal, Klubnik started the Orange Bowl against Tennessee, where he threw two picks on top of getting sacked four times.
During that time, Swinney revealed that in the offseason, he had to deal with his first experience, which was the insanity of the transfer portal. This came after his starting quarterback decided to enter the portal, transferring to Oregon State.
“And honestly, it was my first experience with the insanity of this portal and agents and stuff. Man, I got text messages and stuff, I got people calling. People calling people to call people. I had finally just had enough of it, and I know Cade’s probably getting that stuff.”
“I didn’t want him to have any doubt. Like, hey man, you’re the guy. This is a developmental game. You don’t just show up and be elite. You have to work at this game, and I just felt like he needed to hear that from me, because there was a lot of noise.”
Despite the noise, the Clemson coach ultimately made the correct decision. Klubnik finished with 3,639 yards passing, 36 touchdowns to six interceptions last year, helping to lead Clemson to another ACC title and CFP appearance.
Clemson QB Cade Klubnik and LT Tristan Leigh are listed as questionable. pic.twitter.com/QaezLxU1Oh
— Jon Blau (@Jon_Blau) October 17, 2025
Despite initially being named as a Heisman favorite this season under Swinney, Klubnik has staggered slightly. In six games this season, Klubnik completed 65.8% of his passes for 1,530 yards and 11 touchdowns. The quarterback will also potentially miss tomorrow night’s game.
“We’ve just been taking our time with him and, like I said yesterday, he’s gone from day-to-day to he’s hour-to-hour. We’ve just been smart with him and he’s been able to do what he needed to do.” Swinney revealed.
Backup quarterback Christopher Vizzina is expected to make his first start on Saturday, October 18, against SMU. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. ET with coverage on the ACC Network.
