Can Clemson’s Cade Klubnik join Jayden Daniels and Bo Nix as written-off QBs to become Round 1 draft picks?

Anyone that’s ever tried to acquire true mastery of any subject knows that the term learning curve is very apt. There is nothing in life where the amount of effort exerted will directly correlate to relative improvement. No, with any skill development there will be big leaps made in short time periods, frustratingly long plateaus and even unexplainable backslides (looking at you golf).

It’s why intangible qualities like resilience and confidence are such important qualities in life. It’s easy to keep working when you’re making constant improvements, but not everyone is willing to keep pushing through the lulls and downturns.

In the scouting world, finding the prospects who have shown they will push through those lulls and downturns to show constant improvement is a necessity. Because Day 1 on an NFL field is the ultimate downturn. Nowhere have we seen the dynamic bear out more acutely than at the quarterback position.

The 2024 quarterback class has to be the most shining example of this. Bo Nix was derided in his three years at Auburn before transferring to Oregonwhile there’s the famous video of Arizona State teammates saying “clear his shit out … he sucks anyways” in front of Jayden Daniels’ former locker. Both underwent big-time backslides over their college careers that made them obviously more resilient NFL quarterbacks.

If you are looking for a corollary to those two in the 2026 class, Clemson’s Cade Clubnik is the guy. He’s the only one of the highly touted top seven quarterbacks in this class who started at all as a true freshman. In Klubnik’s sophomore season, there were calls to bench the former top recruit, as he averaged 6.1 yards per attempt and Clemson failed to win 10 games for the first time since 2010. That chorus grew even more impatient at the start of last season when Klubnik went 18-for-29 for 142 yards with no touchdowns and an interception in a blowout loss to Georgia.

But then something magical happened: The leaps in development came. Not only did he roll through to an ACC Championship, but by the end of the season Klubnik was on a national stage in the College Football Playoff tearing up a vaunted Texas defense. He looked like a completely different quarterback altogether from the one we saw the year prior.

That’s growth. That’s resilience. That’s a core building block of a franchise quarterback. The key here, though, is what comes next. Similar to both Daniels and Nix, there’s a reason Klubnik is exhausting his years of eligibility in college. His tape just wasn’t consistent enough last season to justify making the leap, but Klubnik’s draft stock isn’t written in stone yet. There are a lot of reasons to think he could break into the first-round conversation this fall.

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The first is simply the athlete. That’s almost a pre-requisite at the position nowadays, and Klubnik fits the bill. He ran for 588 yards and seven scores last season, and you see it in his efficient pocket movements between reads as well.

From a pure physical tools perspective, Klubnik reminds me of Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy. Neither are that big (Klubnik was verified at 6-foot-1 ½”, 204 pounds in the spring), but both show light feet and NFL-caliber arms. Klubnik used that arm last season to rack up the fifth-most big-time throws in college football last season (28) and the most among returning starters, according to PFF.

That willingness to attack downfield was easily the biggest improvement from his first year to his second. His average depth of target jumped by 2.4 yards from 7.0 to 9.4. And he did it while both his average time to throw and sack rate went down. It was a complete transformation stylistically.

With Klubnik already undergoing such a drastic evolution over the course of his career, it’s hard to put a label on exactly who he’ll be this year. With sky-high expectations for Clemson this season with arguably the most loaded roster in college football, I wouldn’t put it past Klubnik to raise the bar once again.

Think Klubnik will have a massive 2025 season and end up being the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft? Head on over to DraftKings Sportsbookwhere Klubnik is being offered at +600 ($10 to win $60).

Cade Clubnik NFL Draft profile

What scouts are saying about Cade Klubnik

“Klubnik took a big step forward last season to the point that the popular opinion among NFL scouts is that he’s the second-best draft prospect at QB behind Nussmeier and a possibility to go early in the first round of next year’s draft. ‘Athletic, can create off script and a natural playmaker,’ an NFL director of player personnel said. ‘Talented passer. Kept Clemson in the game against Texas.'” — Matt Zenitz (national NFL/national college football senior reporter for CBS Sports)

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Cade Klubnik College Stats

Cade Clubnik 247Sports Profile

High school: Westlake (Austin, Texas)
Class: 2022
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (98)

• National: 13 | QB: 2 | Texas: 3

Check out Cade Klubnik’s full 247Sports profile, here.