Since the beginning of head coach Dabo Swinney’s tenure, Clemson football has seemingly enjoyed two constants: success and good quarterback play.
Over the years, however, Clemson quarterbacks have had different expectations placed on their shoulders, often created in one way or another by the player who came before.
Tajh Boyd, 2010-13
Tajh Boyd introduced Tiger fans to a dynamic downfield passing offense that would soon become the standard when he took over as starter in his sophomore year.
Following a spectacular 10-win season where Boyd threw 33 touchdowns and nearly 4,000 yards, everyone expected the high-flying Clemson offense to blossom further under the Swinney regime.
Even with mounting pressure and an excited fan base, Boyd did not disappoint. In fact, he improved. Clemson’s signal-caller notched career-highs in passing yards, passing touchdowns, rushing yards and rushing touchdowns en route to an 11-2 record in 2012.
Boyd would post nearly identical stats the following year with an identical record. He delivered everything expected of him as a starter year in and year out, save for beating South Carolina.
Deshaun Watson, 2014-16
Deshaun Watson, a highly-touted four-star recruit, was the source of excitement for many heading into the 2014 season.
After the team started the season 1-2, Watson got the starting nod and never looked back. He won every game he started and finished before tearing his ACL before the bowl game.
There was a buzz in Tigertown. Watson looked like the guy in limited action, and few could wait to see what he could do with a full season as the starter.
Watson set a new standard in 2015: a national championship. In 2015, he accounted for over 4,000 total yards and 35 touchdowns, losing only once — the title game.
Despite the heartbreak, the Tigers would be back. In 2016, Deshaun Watson tossed a career-high 41 touchdowns, leading Clemson to its second championship in program history and finishing second in Heisman voting.
When he declared for the 2017 NFL Draft, Watson’s 32 wins as a starter tied for the most in school history. It would be tough for whoever came next to pick up where Watson left off.
Kelly Bryant, 2015-18
Kelly Bryant was Watson’s backup for the first two years of his college career. He threw for a touchdown and an interception in limited action while rushing for three scores.
In his first season as a starter in 2017, he led the team to a 12-2 record, ultimately losing in the College Football Playoff semifinal. Bryant tallied 13 total touchdowns that season against eight interceptions and won the ACC Championship.
At any other school, in any other situation, Bryant would have been hailed as the next quarterback of the dynasty. At Clemson, he was not.
Before the 2017 season, Clemson landed the highest-rated quarterback recruit in history. The entire football world was looking ahead to the 2018 season — not for Bryant, but for the quarterback he was the placeholder for.
After just four games in 2018, Swinney announced that Bryant would no longer be Clemson’s starter, despite an undefeated start. That offseason, Kelly Bryant would transfer away, forever known as one of college football’s unluckiest quarterbacks.
Trevor Lawrence, 2018-20
Trevor Lawrence was a specimen. Coming out of high school, standing at 6-foot-6, Lawrence was the highest-graded quarterback prospect ever.
Football fans everywhere awaited his collegiate debut from his December 2016 commitment until the 2018 season.
Swinney and company clearly couldn’t wait to get Lawrence on the field, either. As a freshman in 2018, he saw significant time in the first four games before he was finally named the starter.
Lawrence was everything the Tigers could have wished for. Fans screamed whenever he stepped on the field like he’d lit them on fire. Opposing defenses would admit that he did light them on fire.
With his iconic blonde curtains, Lawrence threw 30 touchdowns as a freshman, eventually leading Clemson to the first 15-0 season in college football history and the program’s third national championship.
The expectation became for the Tigers to run it back, to keep winning. Lawrence gave it his all for the rest of his tenure, leading undefeated regular seasons the following two years.
However, Joe Burrow and LSU dismantled Clemson in the 2019 national championship. In the 2020 season, the Tigers didn’t reach the title game after Ohio State ended their season in the semifinals.
Lawrence was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft by the Jacksonville Jaguars. He is remembered as a Clemson football legend.
DJ Uiagalelei, 2020-22
For a moment, it seemed like Clemson’s transition from Trevor Lawrence would be seamless. When Lawrence missed the 2020 matchup against No. 4 Notre Dame with illness, a five-star freshman quarterback shone in the spotlight.
Under the lights on a Saturday night primetime game, DJ Uiagalelei threw for 439 yards and two touchdowns before coming up short in overtime. It looked like Swinney had done it again.
However, Uiagalelei’s first season as a starter was a disaster. After receiving preseason buzz as a Heisman candidate, he threw for more interceptions than touchdowns and completed just 55.6% of his passes.
Though the team won 10 games again, it was not up to the Clemson standard, and Swinney recruited another five-star quarterback.
The following season, though statistically better, was just as bad for Uiagalelei. After seven games where fans and media clamored for a freshman backup, Clemson was down big against Syracuse. Swinney pulled Uiagalelei midgame, and that very backup led a comeback win.
Uiagalelei transferred away that offseason, ultimately ushered out due to the big-name recruit he could not outplay.
Cade Klubnik, 2022-2025
Cade Klubnik is the second-highest quarterback prospect in Clemson history. After Uiagalelei transferred out, Klubnik was handed the keys to the offense ahead of his sophomore season.
After a rough start to the year, the Tigers rallied behind Klubnik to end the season at 9-4. He totaled 19 touchdowns and threw nine interceptions.
Heading into 2024, many had concerns regarding Klubnik’s pocket presence and passing ability. His mechanics left much to be desired in 2023, and the team’s run-first mentality did not highlight the former five-star’s arm talent.
Klubnik made significant strides in his junior season. His 6-to-1 touchdown-to-interception ratio was just one signifier of his development, and it looked like Clemson finally had a star quarterback to take the reins again.
He would return for his senior season, and spirits were high in Death Valley. Klubnik topped the 2025 preseason Heisman projections and quarterback rankings, and many believed he would lead the first 16-0 football team in history.
Five games into the 2025 season, Klubnik has not met those expectations. Despite an excellent performance against a bad North Carolina defense, his stats still do not impress. He is entirely out of the Heisman conversation; the ACC Championship is nearly out of reach and the offense has looked lost at times with the Austin, Texas, native at the helm.
There is plenty of time to turn the season around, however. While it’s too early to call this year a lost one, it’s still certainly disappointing given the preseason hype.
