Cade Klubnik's lack of "aura of a star" leads to doubts from CFB insider

College football insider Ari Wasserman doesn't believe Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnik has "star aura." This is noticeable when Deshaun Watson and Trevor Lawrence came before him.

On "Andy & Ari On3," Wasserman said that he doesn't see Klubnik as being the face of college football (Timestamp: 22:30):

"Cade Klubnik is a very, very good quarterback. I'm just not 100% of the way there of he's the face of our sport. I don't know. There's just something – maybe it's because he wasn't excellent or aura of a star right out of the gate. Maybe I'm just having a hard time catching up.

"I have him in the top five, which means I have a lot of respect for him and what I expect from Clemson this year. This is the first time in four years that I've actually thought that Clemson might be good enough to win the national title in August or April or whatever offseason month you want to choose.

"I'm high on him, I don't know if I'm on board with face melting off while watching him yet."

Klubnik heads into his senior year with Clemson after a junior campaign in which he passed for 3,639 yards, 36 touchdowns and six interceptions.

Clemson, eliminated in the first round of the College Football Playoff by the Texas Longhorns, finished 10-4 and ranked 12th.

Can Cade Klubnik lead Clemson back to a national title win?

Syndication: The Anderson Independent Mail - Source: Imagn

Clemson hasn't won a national championship since 2018, when Trevor Lawrence was at the helm. The Tigers are hoping that Cade Klubnik can be their next great quarterback to take the program back to a national title. If so, he'll have to do so in an ACC that features other top programs such as SMU, Miami and Syracuse, all of which are also coming off great 2024 seasons.

Heading into his senior season, the 6-foot-2, 205-pound quarterback out of Austin, Texas, is hoping that he can join an elite group of names who have helped the Tigers achieve college football's ultimate achievement. That journey begins when Clemson takes on LSU to open up the season on Aug. 30.