Clemson Football: What fans want to see most from the Tiger offense

Quarterback efficiency

If Clemson fans were quizzed on which Tiger quarterbacks held the record for the top two single game passing yard totals in program history, most of them would probably guess sooner than later that it is Deshaun Watson & Tajh Boyd.

If Clemson fans were quizzed on who holds the third-most passing yards in a single game in program history, they might go through a few names before they got it right. It’s not Lawrence. Nor is it Charlie Whitehurst or Woody Dantzler.

Its Uiagalelei. His 439 yards against Notre Dame in 2020 comes in just behind Watson’s 580 yards in a losing effort against Pitt in 2016 and Boyd’s 455 yards against Syracuse in 2013.

Let that sink in: Lawrence never had a single game in his three-year Clemson career that eclipsed DJU’s best effort, which like DW’s mark atop the list, was a loss.

The shocking reality is that Lawrence’s highest passing total for a single game isn’t even in Clemson’s top 10.

Lawrence never needed to throw the rock that much. He knew he had weapons all around him. He just needed to be efficient when he did throw the ball, and his receivers and running backs would do the rest.

There is little doubt that Riley’s offense will generate passing yards for Cade Klubnik, but he had plenty of passing yards against Tennessee in last season’s Orange Bowl too. It didn’t equate to a win.

What Clemson fans want to see from Klubnik is the efficiency that has been missing since Lawrence was drafted #1 overall in the 2021 NFL Draft. If Riley is the quarterback whisperer he appears to be, Tiger fans might get their wish.