5 biggest position battles for Clemson Football in fall camp
By John Chancey
Backup Quarterback
Cade Klubnik is the starter. Barring injury or catastrophic collapse, we might not see much of his backup in 2024.
As Clemson fans, we know injury or catastrophic collapse are not out of the realm of possibility.
Christopher Vizzina will be a redshirt freshman in 2024. He was a 4-star coming out of high school, ranked 77th overall in the 247Sports Composite. He struggled as an early enrollee in spring 2023. He was better in spring of 2024 but still doesn’t look ready to play when the games are real.
Enter Trent Pearman, walk-on quarterback from Daniel High School, son of staffer Danny Pearman. 6’-0”. 190 pounds. Redshirt sophomore.
Pearman was good enough for the staff to feel confident with not dressing Paul Tyson at quarterback this season (though he does have eligibility and remains available to activate should injuries decimate the position).
Pearman was also the best quarterback in the 2023 Spring Game. Better than Vizzina. Better than Klubnik.
It would be disingenuous to suggest that there might be a competition for the starting quarterback position without some sort of evidence coming from the staff or insiders. There hasn’t been anything convincing in that regard.
It is not unrealistic for Pearman to grab the backup spot over Vizzina. He has more time in the program and has played better on the field in spring games.
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