Clemson lined up in empty formation on third-and-4 during its first drive against Virginia. Five players were split out wide with no additional protection for quarterback Cade Klubnik along the line of scrimmage.
Klubnik planned to get the ball out quickly to wide receiver Antonio Williams on an option route. Then Klubnik realized the Cavs dropped a defensive end, taking away the short pass to Williams. Klubnik worked his eyes back right toward the Tigers' trio on the right side, which was running a vert system. As he snapped his head back that direction, Klubnik noticed the Cavs had sent the mike linebacker on a delayed blitz up the middle. They were about to collide.
So Klubnik stepped right, moved the pocket and began a scramble drill. Eventually he found a wide-open Cole Turner for a 31-yard completion, which led to the opening score of a 48-31 win.
"Sometimes they get a blitz off, they cover our guys," Klubnik told CBS Sports in a phone conversation. "But the good thing is that doesn't mean the play is over. I think that's something I've been able to do a whole lot more of this year, use my legs at times to either run it or make plays with the ball in my had after escaping the pocket"
From snap to throw in eight seconds altogether, it was masterpiece in madness that encompasses a leap Klubnik's taken in his second season as Clemson's full-time starter.
A year ago, the Tigers ranked 98th nationally in yards per play. Clemson, on a resurgent six-game win streak following a Week 1 loss to Georgia, ranks ninth nationally in that category this season. It's the first time in five years -- way back when Trevor Lawrence called Clemson home -- they can claim a top 70 offense. Klubnik's growth in pressure has been remarkable. He's gone from No. 112 nationally under pressure in 2023, according to PFF, to first in 2024. First!
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This is why Clemson recruited Klubnik, a five-star prospect, and why it paid up to hire Broyles Award winner Garrett Riley away from TCU after the 2022 season. It just took a year to get return on investment. Nothing felt in sync last year during what proved to be a rocky transition season as Riley attempted to install an offense on the fly to both players and staff.
"Last spring, especially the way we did things here, Coach Riley was kind of a lone man coming in here," Klubnik said. "Coach Riley not only had to teach the players all the plays, but he had to teach all the coaches the plays and the system and how we want to do things."
Klubnik is one of the most decorated quarterbacks in Texas high school football history. He went 34-0 as a starter at Westlake High School just outside of Austin. In all, Klubnik won a trio of state championships -- two as the full-time starter -- and set the program record for passing yards at a school that produced Drew Brees, Nick Foles and Sam Ehlinger.
Middle school quarterbacks in Westlake run the same system the high school does. When Todd Dodge, the former UNT head coach, led Westlake he worked with his junior high coaches to dictate how many snaps each quarterback would get each week.
Westlake's system was ingrained in Klubnik at a young age. Riley's system, at least in year one, took some getting used to. One year later, Klubnik said he often knows what Riley is going to call before the play comes in over the headset. They're in sync.
It's easier for Klubnik to deal with pressure because he's got a greater awareness of where his hot read will be. He's run reps of the same plays with enough frequency that he can tell pre-snap if his first read won't be available. And when the play isn't there? Klubnik is more comfortable using his legs, a big offseason emphasis from Riley, to extend plays in a scramble drill situations.
Nearly 16 percent of pressures against Klubnik last season turned into sacks. That number is down to 10% this season.
"Being able to come off a first or second progression and get to the third, fourth or fifth that's what prevents sacks, interceptions and holding the ball too long," Klubnik said.
In checking in with Texas-based 247Sports recruiting analyst Gabe Brooks, Klubnik's recent flair for out-of-structure success aligns with his profile as a recruit.
"Klubnik was a very good athlete for the QB position and regularly extended plays for scramble yards or to find teammates downfield. If you look at his 247Sports scouting report coming out of high school, you will see pocket awareness as one of his noted strengths. Combine that feel with Klubnik's athleticism and you have a QB who can do things, whether designed or off schedule, that most other quarterbacks cannot. Having said that, from a high school perspective, that Westlake team was elite, and Klubnik often operated with a clean pocket or a convoy of moving blockers on designed rollouts. Ball placement and accuracy were hallmarks of Klubnik's Westlake success, and his exceptionally low INT rate -- only seven across nearly 700 varsity throws, a rate of 1-in-98.14 throws -- speaks in part to his processing and field vision."
Comfort within Clemson system is paying dividends in terms of generating explosive plays on offense.
The 2023 Tigers were one of the most conservative passing attacks in the country. They averaged 6.4 air yards per attempt, which ranked 130th among 133 FBS teams. Clemson is up to 8.9 air yards per attempt this season, and they're remarkably efficient on those shot plays.
Klubnik holds a 92.2 PFF grade on passes of 20-plus yards this season with a 55.9 adjusted completion percentage, which is first nationally among QBs with 30-plus attempts. Klubnik posted a 40.5 adjusted completion rate last year in those situations.
Nailing the ball deep requires the entire offense to work in concert. The offensive line needs to block well, and it's doing so much better this year at 35th in pressure rate allowed. The receivers also must get open and catch the ball. A healthy Antonio Williams and the combo of top-50 true freshmen T.J. Moore (16.8 yards per catch) and Bryant Wesco Jr. (23.8 yards per catch) have given that unit a huge boost.
"It was definitely an emphasis," Klubnik said of explosive pass plays. "We've got a lot of depth and great receivers that can really move, run down field. We've also got the offensive line this year that's given more time than last year. They've gotten better and better and we've gotten time to really let that ball fly downfield."
Understanding how Klubnik and Clemson's offense have improved from 2023 to 2024 is easy to comprehend. It's a little more difficult to disassociate Clemson's Week 1 dud against Georgia -- three points and 188 total yards -- with an offense that's averaged 48.5 points per game in the time since.
Asked what happened between Georgia and a 66-point outburst against Appalachian State when the Tigers totaled 712 yards of offense, Klubnik said much it came down to the offense no longer feeling a need to play perfect.
Williams, the junior receiver, told the team as much a day prior to the Appalachian State game: "We don't have to have this tenseness when we play the game. Let's go play free tomorrow.'
"That speech hasn't left us," Klubnik said.
Clemson, which has only had three turnovers and nine total drops in the six games since Georgia, is no longer killing itself with mistakes. This allows the quarterback to play free.
The Tigers started out last season 4-4 overall. They're 11-1 in the time since.
A contending-worthy offense is back at Clemson. Klubnik didn't succumb to the criticism a season ago. He doesn't plan to let the Tigers' offense succumb to the pressure of expectations either.
"A good team will finish 9-3 or 10-2," he said. "We're trying to be a great team."
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