Cade Klubnik with the 5th-best odds to win the Heisman

Can Cade Klubnik become the first Clemson Tiger to win the Heisman Trophy?

When Clemson hired offensive coordinator Garrett Riley away from TCU, Dabo Swinney strayed away from his status quo. Instead of once again hiring from within, Swinney went out and nabbed the hottest name in college football. With Riley now at Clemson, the expectations are for a drastic overhaul of the offense.

Leading the charge will be sophomore quarterback Cade Klubnik. The former 5-star out of Texas showed flashes of brilliance in 2022, coming off the bench to lead Clemson to a win in the ACC Championship Game. He also struggled, along with the rest of the team, in the Orange Bowl loss to Tennessee. As we head into 2023, Vegas believes the Riley-Klubnik combo will work as BetMGM has Klubnik at +1400 to win the Heisman, the fifth-best odds to take home the trophy.

Clemson Athletics

BET MGM Heisman Trophy Favorites:

• Caleb Williams USC +500
• Jayden Daniels LSU +900
• Quinn Ewers Texas +1100
• Michael Penix Jr. Washington +1200
• Cade Klubnik Clemson +1400
• Jordan Travis Florida State +1600
• Drake Maye North Carolina +1600
• Sam Hartman Notre Dame +1600
• Bo Nix Oregon +1600
• Carson Beck Georgia +1800

Riley already has a proven track record of developing quarterbacks. In 2021, a year after transferring from Oklahoma, Tanner Mordecai found himself at the helm of SMU's offense. In his first full season as a starter, he was named Second Team All-AAC, leading SMU to an 8-4 record. Mordecai set the then-school record with 7 touchdown passes against Abilene Christian. He broke his own record last year with 9 touchdown passes against Houston.

In 2022, his first season at TCU, Riley helped turn Max Duggan into a Heisman Finalist. Duggan may be Garrett Riley's greatest success story. Though he didn't start week one, Duggan went on to lead TCU to the College Football Playoff and found himself among the four Heisman Trophy Finalists. He was lethal with the deep ball and was completely in control of the offense, throwing for 3,698 yards and compiling 41 total touchdowns.

Klubnik has a chance to be Riley's best success story yet. He has all the measurables and pedigree to be elite, but does he have it in him to win the first Heisman Trophy in Clemson history?