It does not have to be this hard. With Cade Klubnik off to the NFL, all signs point to last year's backup in Christopher Vizzina being the new starter under center for the Clemson Tigers. Although true freshman Tait Reynolds and redshirt freshman Chris Denson may still be competing for the starting job, this battle is not fooling anyone. Under Dabo Swinney, Clemson has often played it by the book.
Zach Koons mentioned it as much when discussing Vizzina in his quarterback rankings over on SI.
"Clemson is moving past the never-fully-realized Cade Klubnik era by turning to the guy who backed him up for the past two years," Koons wrote. "It would seem to be a very typical move by Dabo Swinney to favor continuity and familiarity rather than dip into the portal, but it could also be a testament that Vizzina is the best option for the Tigers."
He finished up his blurb on Vizzina by saying that he was not the problem in Clemson's loss to SMU.
"In his sole start against SMU, Vizzina was far from the issue, throwing for 317 yards and three touchdowns in a 35–24 loss," Koons finished. "If he’s capable of producing performances like that more regularly, Clemson may be able to right the ship after a few down years."
Ourlads currently has Vizzina as Clemson's QB1 on their depth chart, with Denson as his backup and Reynolds as the third-stringer. Again, Reynolds might have a lot of talent, but Swinney usually plays it safe when picking his next starting quarterback. It has served him pretty much every step of the way throughout his dynastic run leading the program. The hope is Vizzina can be better than Klubnik was.
It could come down to how well he jells with Chad Morris and Tajh Boyd within this Clemson offense.
Christopher Vizzina checks every box to be the next Clemson starting QB
Coming out of high school, Vizzina was a four-star recruit from Birmingham, hoping to become the next star quarterback at Clemson. Since Swinney's staff regularly ventures outside of South Carolina to get its signal-caller, Vizzina seems to the fit the bill of what the Tigers want. Having a former star offensive coordinator back calling plays and another Clemson legend in his ear should certainly help.
Right now, it makes the most sense for Clemson to give the keys to Vizzina and drive this thing off the lot. He can take advantage of the bevy of great receiving options he has at his disposal. That is not to say Reynolds or Denson are incapable of that, but rather Vizzina being mature enough to handle the responsibilities given to him. Every quarterback battle is different, but this one is not all that difficult.
Overall, if Clemson really wants to get back into the College Football Playoff, the Tigers cannot play with their food in the first few weeks of the season. They need a guy under center they can trust. Last year cannot repeat itself with a few Power Four losses early in the season. More importantly, Clemson does not want to break Reynolds' confidence. If Vizzina is not it, then you can pivot during a lost year.
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Ultimately, Clemson needs to keep is simple, stupid. The Tigers need to let logic prevail over their emotions. Even if Vizzina is the frontrunner to earn the starting job, what sort of gamesmanship are the Tigers playing heading into the Battle for Death Valley with LSU? Not deciding on a quarterback is not as effective of a strategy to throw Lane Kiffin off his game as one would think, so make the move.
It so much better to fail fast than to delay waiting to see if the supposed heir apparent has it or not.
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