Antonio Williams likes future of Clemson receivers with Klubnik

Williams caught 53 passes this season.

by Ariana Pensy - Correspondent - Fri Dec 30 07:00:04 GMT-04:00 2022

FT LAUDERDALE, FL - Antonio Williams didn't know what his freshman year would look like, but he had the confidence he would surprise everyone except himself.

Williams led Clemson’s receivers this year with a total of 563 receiving yards on 53 catches. He also caught four touchdown passes and averaged 43.3 receiving yards per game. Overall, he had a pretty strong rookie campaign.

“I didn’t know what type of season it was going to be,” Williams said. “I was just working for the best and hoping for the best and things turned out alright. Great start, just expecting to build on this and get better.”

As a freshman, he was tasked with proving himself and did so successfully. He will definitely continue to be an integral part of the Clemson offense going forward.

“I had to come down here and prove myself, be a starter,” Williams said. “That was one of my big goals.”

One of his big goals for his future at Clemson is to become a 1,000-yard receiver. This currently seems attainable, especially with freshman quarterback Cade Klubnik at the helm. Klubnik seems to provide a spark for the Tigers’ offense. Further, they have a promising wide receiver group with fellow freshmen Adam Randall and Cole Turner.

“I think we’re going to be really good in the future and we have a lot of potential,” Williams said. “As we get older and more adept to playing speedy, I think we’ll do some really good things.”

The freshman quarterback Klubnik will be making his first career start in the Orange Bowl going against the Tennessee Volunteers on Friday (8 p.m./ESPN). Klubnik did play most of the ACC Championship, where he completed 20 of 24 passes for 279 yards and a touchdown. He also had 30 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown. He brings a different element from the Tigers’ former quarterback, DJ Uiagalelei, who has now transferred to Oregon State.

“Cade’s a little smaller and quicker so I feel like he can maybe extend the plays longer when he gets in trouble, just scrambling and give you a chance,” Williams said. “Whenever I get the ball in my hands, obviously I appreciate that and I’ll never hate on Cade for giving me the ball.”

Going into next season, the receivers will be a lot more experienced, as will Cade. This increased experience, along with their recruit in Tyler Brown from Greenville, South Carolina among more signees at the spot. Randall should also be in better health as he was recovering from a torn ACL back in April. While he did make a fast recovery, he still should be in a lot better physical condition for next season.

Clemson could use the improvement in their passing game. This season, they currently rank No. 72 in passing offense, averaging only 225.6 passing yards per game. This is partially due to the fact that the Tigers were able to rely on their rushing attack led by sophomore Will Shipley often, having an average of 179 rushing yards per game. This also probably has to do with the play from Uiagalelei, which was rather inconsistent throughout the season. The Tigers hope Klubnik will be the solution to consistent quarterback play. In addition, if the receivers like Williams are able to make a sophomore leap, their offense could be incredibly dangerous next season and allow Clemson to make the jump into a playoff team.