Austin (Texas) Quarterla Westlake Top247 2022 Cade Klubnik tells 247Sports that he has committed to Clemson. He chose to play for Dabo Swinney and his team about his other finalists in Florida, North Carolina and Texas.
The four-star Klubnik becomes the No. 4 commit for the ACC powerhouse at the beginning of the cycle.
“I feel at home from the start.” Klubnik said. “I feel that the Clemson culture and family is what will make me.”
What Klubnik talks about was certainly very good on the pitch last fall. As a junior, the 6 foot, 2 1/2 and 186 pound signal caller pitched for 3,495 yards and 35 touchdowns with another 583 running yards and 15 more scores leading his team to a state championship (where he was the MVP of the game ) in the largest class of the Lone Star State. He is ranked by Top247 as the fifth professional player in the country and the potential number 74 in general.
Swinney and defender coach Brandon Streeter had been recruiting Klubnik for some time, raised the bar with an offer last Friday.
“I told them at the time that I wanted to come and play,” said Klubnik. “We built a great relationship last year.”
Despite the Covid-19 pandemic putting the NCAA into a dead recruitment period, Klubnik had a chance to visit Clemson during the fall to the Tigers’ victory over Syracuse.
“I think people,” he said of what stands out in relation to Clemson. “They make you feel at home. It’s a different feeling there than I felt anywhere else and I didn’t get to know the people there like the coaches, I didn’t get to shake their hands, but the people that surround the whole place and the dozens and dozens of FaceTimes and Zooms I had with them that they never changed their character.
“The consistency of success, I love the coaches, being able to play with this type of team is what I have always been looking for, but the fact that they are incredible people is also what really stood out. I love their campus and everything about it. “
Klubnik erupted as a junior after playing as a reserve in his second year, where he pitched for 680 yards and eight touchdowns with a further 271 running yards and four goals playing against arguably the best collegiate football competition in the country. In addition to the programs already mentioned, offers came from companies like Texas A&M, Baylor, TCU, Arizona State, Auburn, Florida State, Georgia, LSU, Miami, Michigan, Ole Miss, Penn State and Washington as well.
“Good height and lean construction with an above average structure,” wrote national sports analyst Gabe Brooks in his assessment. “Highly productive QB vs. TXHSFB 6A competition. Throws with a throw over the head and is usually on top of the ball. Comfortable in your pocket and in out-of-hours situations. Competent as an improvised QB. Shows the ability to play during the race on multiple levels. Professional-style QB, yet mobile enough to keep defenses honest. It exhibits good speed in the middle of the field, especially when the footwork is consistent. He will enter college having faced strong competition in relation to the level of high school. Competitor participating in athletics (400 meters, long jump, triple jump). Rope delivery and need to speed up the release. You can transfer intermediate speed more consistently for perimeter pitches. Occasionally, it takes unnecessary risks, but it has set up a sterling INT fee as a juinor (one in 117 attempts). One of the best QBs in Texas in what appears to be another strong class in the position. High-level projects with long-term NFL Draft potential. “
Klubnik joins a class of Clemson that already includes four other stars in the offensive line Collin Sadler and Blake Miller together with the receiver Adam Randall. This move rises to position 17 in the 247Sports Composite ranking. The Tigers have finished in the top five in the last two cycles and Klubnik takes them back in that direction.