How Clemson's Cade Klubnik Can Reignite His Season Against Boston College

As the Clemson Tigers head into their Week 7 matchup against the Boston College Eagles, there are some standout statistics that fourth-year starter Cade Klubnik should keep in the back of his mind as he hits the gridiron.

Through the first six weeks of the season, the Eagles' defense has made life easy for opposing quarterbacks, allowing big performances in nearly every Power 4 face-off.

In a 42-40 double-overtime loss against Michigan State earlier in the season, junior Aidan Chiles put on a show, throwing for 231 yards and a career-high four touchdowns while adding 39 yards on the ground and a rushing score.

In Week 5, the Boston College defense allowed Cal true freshman Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele (JKS) to complete 22-of-34 passes for 254 yards and two touchdowns, resulting in a 28-24 loss. While JKS, who's top-15 in passing yards nationally, has had an extremely productive season, their secondary is undeniably a negative factor week-to-week.

Most recently, the Eagles' secondary got torched by Pittsburgh's true freshman quarterback, Mason Heintschel, in his first career start. The 18-year-old amassed 323 yards through the air to go with four touchdown passes in the 48-7 blowout.

Now Klubnik steps in, a former five-star with far more experience than any quarterback Boston College has faced so far.

Coming off his best outing of the 2025 season against North Carolina, where he completed 22-of-24 passes for 254 yards and a season-high four touchdowns in a blowout win, this matchup could be exactly what he needs to build rhythm and confidence heading into the pivotal second half of the season.

"I told Cade, sometimes I think [you] guys, when you get in a situation, you forget who you are because everybody's telling you what you're not and sometimes you can lose your confidence a little bit or try to do too much," head coach Dabo Swinney told the media Tuesday. "My message was more, 'You're Cade Klubnik, just be Cade.'"

"That was obviously a tremendous performance [vs. UNC] by him, so hopefully it can get him back on track and playing with the type of confidence that we need him to play with because he's a really good player and it's good to see him playing free."

With Boston College allowing at least two passing touchdowns in three of five games so far and ranking 85th in the FBS for passing yards allowed, Klubnik has the perfect chance to exploit the shaky secondary and quiet critics after Clemson's worst start in 21 years.

If he takes advantage, this could be the week that reminds everyone why he was one of the most hyped quarterback prospects heading into 2025.