CLEMSON RECRUITING

Dabo makes call to Texas QB Cade Klubnik for much-awaited offer
Klubnik is one of the top players in the state of Texas.

Dabo makes call to Texas QB Cade Klubnik for much-awaited offer


by - Senior Writer -

Friday afternoon, Cade Klubnik received the phone call he had been waiting to receive. When he answered, Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney was on the other end.

Klubnik is a 4-star quarterback out of Austin (TX) Westlake who ranks as the No. 74 player overall and No. 5 pro-style quarterback according to the industry-generated 247Sports Composite. Rivals has Klubnik ranked as the No. 40 player overall and the No. 4 pro-style quarterback in the country. With over 30 offers, Klubnik is a rising star who should see his rankings improve over the spring and summer and next fall.

Despite a plethora of offers from all the major programs in the country, there was one offer that he was waiting on -- and that was Clemson. The Clemson coaching staff had a longer relationship with 5-star quarterback Ty Simpson out of Tennessee, and they were waiting on Simpson to make a decision before offering Klubnik. Simpson committed to Alabama Friday afternoon, but Swinney called Klubnik beforehand.

“Coach Swinney called me about an hour before Ty's commitment. And he said he was in a meeting, and he got the news that he heard from somebody that Ty was going to end up committing to Alabama,” Klubnik told TigerNet. “He goes, ‘Let's go. We're getting Cade, baby.’ And then he ended up calling me. And they were all super pumped. I probably talked to him three times on separate occasions yesterday, but they were all super excited. He ended up calling me saying he wants me to come play there.”

Klubnik said the coaches were upfront about the earlier relationship with Simpson, and that he doesn’t feel like anyone’s second choice.

“I've known. They've told me multiple times that we're kind of equal. It's just, they've known him and they've gotten to meet him multiple times,” he said. “And that's just kind of the only thing that was missing for them with me, but they've never made me feel like I was second, which is really good through the whole process. And I don't think I've ever felt like that. I think I've just kind of felt like, I'm a guy that they want.”

What has kept Clemson in the mix?

“Their consistency with me. It's definitely been huge,” Klubnik said. “And just the people there, and the connections that I've made with them, and the relationships that I've built have definitely been really huge. Just people that I can see myself growing with for four years, and just good people, and just great program. It's somewhere you can have fun while doing it.”

Klubnik said he wasn’t expecting to receive the offer from the head man.

“It's crazy, especially just growing up watching him,” he said. “And I'm like, ‘Dang, that'd be pretty cool to go play for that guy.’ It still seems a little bit surreal.”

Klubnik had a stellar junior season. The 6-foot-2 1/2, 186-pound Klubnik threw for 3,495 yards and 35 touchdowns with another 583 rushing yards and 15 more scores. Klubnik was recently named the Class 6A Offensive Player of the Year in Texas by the Texas Sportswriters Association. In the state title game win over Southlake Carroll, Klubnik finished the game 18-of-20 passing for 220 yards and a touchdown, and added 97 rushing yards.

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