Christopher Vizzina takes confidence out of 'really special moment'

Christopher Vizzina performed when called on in Clemson's home opener.

Brooks Thomason - Correspondent - Tuesday, September 17 2024

Christopher Vizzina worked behind the scenes to become the best player he can be when called upon.

In Clemson's home opener, the 6-4 QB out of Birmingham, Alabama, took the field against Appalachian State and did just that.

Starting quarterback Cade Klubnik came out first and dominated the Mountaineers. The Tigers scored 56 points in the first half. In the locker room, Garrett Riley and Dabo Swinney came to Vizzina to inform him he was taking over for Klubnik. Vizzina saw his first real action other than running the clock down in the fourth quarter. The moment felt surreal for the 19-year-old.

“Coach Riley told me it was go time, and Coach Swinney, in the team meeting, he was like, you know, it's CV time, go show us what you can," Vizzina said. "That was a boost of confidence right there, just feeling everyone believe in me. I was just excited when I heard it; going up by a lot of points before halftime, I knew I was going to get my chance, so it was awesome."

After leading the Tigers to the goalline, Clemson couldn’t find the end zone initially and had a fourth and goal on the five. Vizzina took a run through the left side and waltzed into the endzone for a five-yard touchdown and his first score as a Tiger.

Vizzina’s mindset had one goal: to attack.

“It was fourth down, so I knew how to go get it. One of the first things I was thinking was, I gotta go get in there. The circumstances are perfect for me. It's a night game. Death Valley fourth down,” Vizzina said. “Running with the twos. Those are my guys. And you know, I wasn't going to wasn't going to come up short and, you know, go in the end zone almost got tripped up by the cheerleaders, but. That was a really special moment...A lot of things that took to get at that moment.”

The moment for Vizzina was something not offered at the level of play so far. His longest performance came in the spring game this year, but Vizzina attempted his first pass at the competitive collegiate level.

Many athletes dream of making the collegiate level and, for some, playing at Clemson. Scoring a touchdown in the Valley is special for any player, and their first goes down in history.

“That's the type of moments you sit back on your pillow and just dream about as a young kid. And when I was able to do that and celebrate my teammates, like I said, that was just really a dream come true. Just the journey and, to go back to sideline and Coach Swinney, he was like, 'Was that your first one?'” Vizzina said. “I was like, 'Yes, sir.' And, it's encouraging and going back and see all my other teammates and the defense just holding around me. Just really excited for me.”

It wasn’t just the young quarterback who was excited for him. Clemson fans on social media voiced their positive assessment of Vizzina after his accuracy and poise to take over for Klubnik. In 11 passes, Vizzina completed seven for 78 yards, adding six carries for 31 yards.

Last month, Dabo Swinney praised the QB2 for his performance in training camp.

“His ball placement, and the game has really slowed down for him. He is a really, really big kid and can run. And he’s very accurate. It has been a good camp for him. He is coming out of it with a ton of confidence. And it is good for the team to have confidence in him as well,” Swinney said.