Can Klubnik Build Off Massive Week Two Performance for Clemson Against NC State?

Clemson Tigers quarterback Cade Klubnik played his best game in a Tigers uniform last time he was on the field.

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The Clemson Tigers get ACC conference play officially underway on Saturday afternoon at 12:00 p.m. EST against North Carolina State at home in Memorial Stadium.

Clemson is of course coming off an early week three bye following a start over the first two weeks that was about as contrasting as possible. An embarrassing 31-point beatdown against Georgia where the offense could muster up just a field goal along with being held to less than 200 total yards did not exactly inspire hope that good things were ahead for the unit.

The offense looked to be hampered by the same lack of explosiveness that has plagued Dabo Swinney and his staff for years now, and it did not appear that quarterback Cade Klubnik had taken the leap that many hoped he would in an offseason full of re-tooling around the program.

Then, week two came along and it looked like the Tigers, and Klubnik himself, were playing a totally different sport from what they had showed just a week prior. A first half offensive eruption that saw the Tigers score 56 points and put up 525 total yards (both program records for a half) against an Appalachian State team that has been one of the preeminent Sun Belt programs for many years now inspired confidence.

Confidence that maybe, just maybe, Georgia is incredibly elite and that their showing against Clemson may have been more about the Bulldogs' dominance than Tiger offensive ineptitude.

Incredibly, Klubnik accounted for seven of the eight first half touchdowns, five through the air and two on the ground. Not only that, but he completed a ridiculous 24 of his 26 attempts for nearly 400 yards and no interceptions.

Now, as the games start to get real in terms of having an impact on the Tigers' chances in the ACC, and in turn the postseason, the question now becomes whether or not Klubnik can continue to build on the performance against App State and guide the Clemson offense to a place where it can be seen as a strength rather than a crippling weakness.

If he can, the Tigers will make a statement against a good Wolfpack defense that despite last season, the ACC still runs through Clemson, South Carolina.