Analyst Says Trevor Lawrence and Deshaun Watson Were ‘Masking Issues’ for Clemson

A college football analyst believes there's one major issue with Clemson's current roster.

Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence (16) runs for a first down year South Carolina defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw(3) during the first quarter at Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia, South Carolina Saturday, November 30, 2019. / Ken Ruinard / staff / USA TODAY NETWORK

Over much of the past decade, Clemson has had some of the top quarterbacks in college football.

Notably with Deshaun Watson and Trevor Lawrence, the Tigers were well off and had an advantage over some of the other top teams in the country because of them.

When they signed Cade Klubnik out of high school, they expected him to do similar things as the two Clemson all-time greats.

It's almost impossible to do so given the success Watson and Lawrence found, but if Klubnik were even half of the players they were, perhaps things would be different.

That hasn't been the case yet, but there's time for him to figure it out.

Klubnik has the tools as a former five-star recruit, so it's now about him figuring it out and putting it together on the field consistently.

Fox Sports analyst Joe Klatt believes that's why Clemson has struggled recently.

He went on to say that Clemson had some of their issues masked with Watson and Lawrence at the helm, and this is the result of them no longer being with the program.

"And maybe that's a team that can still develop and go on and have a really good year in what is unquestionably a soft league, and I hope that's the case. But right now, this looks exactly like what happened at the University of Texas. The roster is not what it was under Deshaun Watson and Trevor Lawrence. Deshaun Watson wins a championship. Trevor Lawrence wins a championship, but then he was masking issues when those older players graduated. So by the time Trevor walked out the door, Clemson was not Clemson, just like by the time Colt McCoy walked out the door, Texas was not Texas."

Klatt's comments aren't necessarily wrong, however, they have some missing context.

While the quarterback play was certainly better when Watson and Lawrence were in the program, those Clemson teams had much more than just at the quarterback position.

The talent on the team now isn't bad by any means, but there were multiple NFL stars on those Clemson rosters. That isn't to say there won't be on this current team, but it was different during those eras.

There was a reason why they were the best team in the country a few years ago.

If the Tigers could play how they did when Watson and Lawrence were under center, they'd be in a good position to win a national championship.

However, the last 12 months have shown few signs of that happening.

Maybe that changes over the next few months, especially if Klubnik can perform the way he did on Saturday in their home opener.