Cade Klubnik heard his critics

Clemson Tigers quarterback Cade Klubnik is heading into his final season of collegiate ball expecting to compete for the sport’s highest honor, the Heisman Trophy, this season. However, there was a time when the public consensus was that he didn’t have what it took to be a starting quarterback for one of college football’s premier programs.

“Everybody kind of told me I sucked, and wasn’t very good,” Klubnik said, according to ESPN. “A lot of people wanted me out of Clemson.”

However, after Clemson’s 38-35 win in the Gator Bowl against the Kentucky Wildcats, which capped a season that saw the Tigers lose their streak of 12 straight double-digit-win seasons, Klubnik’s head coach, Dabo Swinney, pulled him into his office and told him what he needed to hear: “I believe in you.”

“To have somebody that I look up to and believe in, tell me that he believes in me, it just filled me with confidence,” Klubnik said. “He could have gone and done what a lot of other coaches would do [and find a transfer quarterback], but he didn’t.”

Swinney spoke on the criticism his quarterback was up against.

“When you sign up to do this, whether you’re a coach at this level or certainly play the quarterback position, there’s a lot of criticism,” Swinney said. “I just knew there was going to be a lot of noise. He’s a young person, and I just felt like it was important that I let him know that I fully believed in him. I didn’t want him worrying about me going out and getting another guy. I wanted him to know, hey, you’re my guy.”

Swinney revealed what he said to the young man. “I told him if it don’t work out, then I’m going down with you.”

“He’s got a lot of great days ahead,” Swinney went on. “And you need a little luck, you know. I know everybody wants to make all these predictions and things like that, but you predict your way in anything. You gotta go do it. I know this if that guy stays healthy, we will have a chance. He’s going to always give you a chance.”