As Klubnik arrives on campus, Streeter will have to manage QB battle

DJ Uiagalelei will battle three others for a starting spot.

by David Hood - Senior Writer - Mon Jan 03 08:00:06 GMT-04:00 2022

Cade Klubnik won’t be on campus for another week, but there is already a buzz about a potential quarterback battle between the heralded 5-star and incumbent DJ Uiagalelei. Now it’s up to new offensive coordinator and longtime quarterbacks coach Brandon Streeter to manage that competition.

Uiagalelei started all 13 games of his sophomore campaign, completing 208-374 passes (55.6%) for 2246 yards, nine touchdowns, and 10 interceptions. According to the NCAA stats website, Uiagalelei ranks 107th out of 110 passers in passing efficiency with a rating of 108.65. Out of quarterbacks who played in 13 games, his nine touchdowns were only better than Rutgers’ Noah Vedral, who had seven.

However, a lot of Uiagalelei’s issues can be tied to an injured wide receivers group and an offensive line that played musical chairs for most of the season.

“What he's been through this year is going to make him better. In his last four or five weeks, he's been at his best. He hasn't complained one time. Seven scholarship receivers,” head coach Dabo Swinney said. “Who can survive that? Who can survive seven scholarship receivers out three games in a row and just keep finding a way? This guy here, he's got the heart of a champion, an unbelievable character, and just really, really proud of him.

“We weren't very good around him early in the season. And because of that, his mistakes as a young player were magnified. Every young player at quarterback I've had has had mistakes, but we weren't quite as good around him as we were those other guys.”

Klubnik never lost as a high school starter (taking over the role full time his last two seasons) and led Westlake High of Austin, Texas, to two Class 6A state championships in the state's largest and most competitive division.

Klubnik is listed as the top quarterback and 18th-best overall recruit with a .9901 rating in the 247Sports Composite. Former Tigers QB Deshaun Watson arrived ranked 42nd overall and the No. 1-rated dual threat QB with a .9794 rating.

Former Clemson QB Trevor Lawrence holds Clemson's top all-time recruiting rating at .9999 while Klubnik stands 17th and Watson 37th.

Klubnik will battle Uiagalelei and former walk-ons Hunter Helms and Billy Wiles for a spot on the depth chart, and Streeter said his message to all of his quarterbacks will be to find improvement wherever possible.

“It is really not to just DJ, but to all of them," Streeter said. "Just continue to improve. That is what I saw (UIagalelei) do, really, especially in the second half of the year. Just battling through the adversity, like I mentioned earlier, but the improvement and never backing down to always finding something to get better at.”

Streeter likes the mix he has at quarterback.

“I think we are going to have a heck of a team coming back and we have some great guys that we just signed and we are really excited about those guys coming into the mix," Streeter said. "That is what spring ball is for, it is kind of, ‘Alright, let’s put the pieces of the puzzle out on the table now, and let's kind of put it together one practice at a time.’ Competition is always good. At every position, there is always going to be competition. It makes them all better.

“I’m excited for all three of the quarterbacks that I have and the fourth one coming in, ‘Hey, compete. Get better,'" Streeter said. "That is what they have done.”