ESPN Releases QB Rankings, Clemson's Klubnik Slips from Preseason Buzz

Heading into this 2025 season, the Clemson Tigers and head coach Dabo Swinney felt confident with senior signal caller Cade Klubnik at the helm of a team with national championship expectations.

However, five weeks into the year, the former five-star quarterback has gone from a Heisman contender to a low-tier starter, leading his team to a 1-3 overall record and 0-2 conference record.

On Thursday, long-time ESPN writer Bill Connelly released his Power Four QB rankings, and he doesn't like what he's seen from Klubnik so far, sitting him at No. 54 – 11th in the ACC.

After a breakout season in 2024, the 6-foot-2 dual-threat put up career numbers of 4,102 total yards and 43 touchdowns to just six interceptions. That run led to an ACC Championship and Clemson's first College Football Playoff appearance since 2020, and many expected his final year to be even stronger.

Unfortunately, he hasn't seen the same success to start this season, throwing for 996 yards and six touchdowns to four interceptions. Even using his legs has been a struggle, as he has scored just one touchdown and averaged 1.8 yards per carry on 34 carries.

"We knew this could be an odd college football season for quarterback play, with so many top teams fielding new starters and only a few known entities -- including Klubnik and Allar, who have not earned that label -- starting out near the top of the polls," Connelly wrote on ESPN. "But this has all been even stranger than we could have imagined."

"It's just shocking how poor Clemson's passing game has been this year. Klubnik ranks 93rd in yards per dropback, 102nd in success rate, and 96th in interception rate. He's facing blitzes constantly behind a banged-up offensive line (the run game has been wholly mediocre), and he's firing short and mostly ineffective passes."

His poor performance and results through four games played in his senior campaign have reflected in his Total QBR of 45, ranking 94th of 136 in FBS. 

"He posted a 78.7 Total QBR in 2024, but he hasn't topped 60.0 in a 2025 game yet," Connelly finished. "This has been an utterly disastrous September."

Clemson will travel to Chapel Hill, North Carolina, this weekend to face the Tar Heels, seeking its first ACC win of the season. Against a North Carolina team that allows over 200 passing yards per game, the All-ACC talent looks to bounce back from a rough start.