Klubnik feels great about where the Clemson offense is

Cade Klubnik faces his toughest opponent yet in Death Valley this weekend with No. 4 FSU.

by Ariana Pensy - Correspondent - Wed Sep 20 12:30:13 GMT-04:00 2023

CLEMSON - Clemson’s dominant performance against Florida Atlantic was comforting for many fans, viewing their Tigers back at the level they typically see.

“I just had a lot of joy on Saturday, and just really fun. It was a fun game right off the bat and just obviously got rolling early and just really exciting, felt really comfortable out there and felt great,” Clemson starting quarterback Cade Klubnik said. “I feel great about where we’re at and just the way we’re going to be able to finish every game.”

True freshman Tyler Brown really showed what he is capable of. Against the Owls, he caught all three of his targets for 49 yards and two touchdowns; those were the first touchdowns of his collegiate career. He was named the ACC Rookie of the Week for his efforts. That even topped a talented teammate in sophomore receiver Antonio Williams, who did not receive the honor last season.

The combination of Brown and Williams will be incredibly important going forward for Clemson. These young receivers have shown they can make an impact early and often and are considered top targets for Klubnik in the passing game.

“(Brown)’s a guy that’s just gotten here since day one and has immediately made an impact. Him and Antonio (Williams), just, that’s a duo right there,” Klubnik said. “He all saw what Antonio can do in the last year as a true freshman, even the first three games, and obviously Tyler had a heck of a game this past game. Those are two guys I love being in there, two guys I can depend on every single play, and they’re just weapons.”

However, Clemson has also fallen victim to injuries. Primarily, this relates to redshirt freshman Cole Turner. In last year’s ACC Championship win over UNC, Turner was the only receiver last season to have a 100-yard receiving game in only his second game played, tying the team record for taking the least amount of games to have this kind of performance. Unfortunately, he will be out for the season after tearing three of his abductor muscles, according to Clemson coach Dabo Swinney.

“Definitely very upsetting,” Klubnik said regarding Turner’s injury. “A guy who didn’t really play a lot last year, was redshirted…to just kind of play two games this year, obviously very tough for him and a tough loss. But, it just goes back to, I feel so confident in the guys that we got right behind him.”

When that kind of injury presents itself, the best a team can do is move forward onto the next game, and that is exactly what the Tigers are going to do. They face their biggest challenge by far: No. 4 Florida State.

The Seminoles are off to a strong start. Sitting at 3-0, they won their season opener against LSU, who is now ranked No. 12. They blew out Southern Mississippi 66-13, but struggled against Boston College. They ultimately did beat out the Eagles, 31-29. But that game was important for showing that they do have weaknesses that Clemson can potentially take advantage of.

Florida State also did not escape the third week of the season completely unscathed. Their Heisman contender, sixth-year quarterback Jordan Travis suffered an injury in the second quarter and was not quite right for the rest of the game. Still, Travis is having the best season of his career thus far, with eight touchdowns and only one interception, as well as a quarterback rating of 166.

“He’s had a great career…He is just a great quarterback and definitely going to be a good challenge for our defense,” Klubnik said of Travis. “He seems like a great guy, and definitely excited to play him on Saturday.”

With the combination of Travis, their 6 foot-7 receiver and redshirt junior Johnny Wilson, and the rest of the Seminoles' talented team, this game will show just how much Clemson has truly improved from the beginning of the season to now.

“All around, just a heck of a team. It’s going to be a great matchup for us, and they’ve got great athletes all around,” Klubnik said. “(It’s) going to be a good game.”