Clemson Tigers QB Cade Klubnik Must 'Be Superman' to Beat Texas Longhorns

The Clemson Tigers star quarterback will have to do his all if they want to compete with the Texas Longhorns in the opening round of the playoffs.

Dec 7, 2024; Charlotte, NC, USA; Clemson Tigers quarterback Cade Klubnik (2) drops to throw during the second quarter against the Southern Methodist Mustangs in the 2024 ACC Championship game at Bank of America Stadium. / Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

The Clemson Tigers are heavy underdogs for Saturday afternoon's playoff game against the Texas Longhorns and will need their stars to step up if they want to pull off the upset.

Luckily for the Tigers, the player at the most important position has taken a massive leap this season. Could it be enough of a leap to lead them on a playoff run, though?

In previewing the College Football Playoff matchup, Pro Football Focus' Max Chadwick and Dalton Wasserman highlighted Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnik as the most important player on the team. They pondered that he would have to be 'superman' in order to pull off the victory.

This season started out with the junior quarterback reaching a new low. People questioned his reliability as a starter after the opening week loss to the Georgia Bulldogs. He answered those doubters with the best season of his career after.

Klubnik has been one of college football's best passers this year. He has completed 63.7% of his passes for 33 touchdowns with just five interceptions.

It is clear that the trust within the offense has grown and they can finally create explosive plays once again.

Even more impressive, he has been able to do so with just one truly elite weapon on the outside. Wide receiver Antonio Williams has 71 catches for 838 yards with 10 touchdowns, breaking out into the player he showed he could be as a freshman.

Overall, the Tigers have the No. 17 passing attack in the country with 274.1 yards per game.

The strength of the Longhorns defense just happens to be their secondary. They allow the fewest passing yards per game in the country with just 143.1 given up. Their pass rush is also elite, making the quarterbacks job hard in every facet.

There is an argument to be made, though, that Klubnik is better than any passer that Texas has faced this season, though. Carson Beck is the only player that comes close and the gap after that is far. The next is probably Diego Pavia of the Vanderbilt Commodores.

Beck did definitely struggled more against the Longhorns than mostly everyone else on the schedule. In their first full match, he only completed 56.1% of his passes for 175 yards and three interceptions.

Klubnik does bring an extra level of skill, though, with his legs. He has 106 rushes for 458 yards and seven touchdowns.

If he can break off a couple of runs like Pavia did in clutch moments, this could be a different game than many people expect.

The star quarterback will need every aspect of his game to be on point if he wants to lead his team to an upset win this weekend.