Clemson football QB Cade Klubnik inspired hope vs. UNC in 2022. Why he can again Saturday

The last time Clemson football faced North Carolina, it was something of a coming out party for quarterback Cade Klubnik. The then-freshman had appeared in eight games prior, including coming in for a struggling D.J. Uiagalelei against both Syracuse and Notre Dame. But he hadn't attempted more than six passes, and that was in Week 1.

With Uiagalelei again struggling early in the ACC Championship game, coach Dabo Swinney turned to Klubnik. He went 20-for-24 with 279 passing yards and a touchdown, leading Clemson to a dominant 39-10 win over the Tar Heels. He was named the game's Most Valuable Player.

The future certainly looked bright after that big performance in the title game last season, but Klubnik and Clemson have been on a bit of a rollercoaster since. After beating UNC, Clemson suffered a 31-14 Orange Bowl loss to Tennessee in which Klubnik threw for 320 yards but had two interceptions.

Then in the offseason, the hype built again. Klubnik was expected to lead a new-look, Air Raid-inspired Clemson offense with a new coordinator in Garrett Riley. He was said to have matured and grown as a quarterback.

Then the season started, and Klubnik looked like what he is: a young quarterback with plenty of potential, but who hasn't fully realized it — yet. There were head-scratching decisions, plenty of fumbles and some other issues not on Klubnik's shoulders, and Clemson found itself 4-4.

Now, the rollercoaster is headed upward again. The Tigers (6-4, 3-4 ACC) have won back-to-back games, including an upset of No. 12 Notre Dame and a dominant win over Georgia Tech. Klubnik and the offense overall have looked better, and Klubnik had one of his best games yet against the Yellow Jackets with four passing touchdowns.

Next up is No. 20 UNC (8-2, 4-2) at Memorial Stadium on Saturday (3:30 p.m. ET, ESPN), almost a year after that ACC Championship matchup. Klubnik and the Tigers once again have an opportunity to inspire hope for the future against the Tar Heels.

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Clemson can't make the conference title game this year, nor can it make the College Football Playoff as it hoped to before the season began. At this point, the Tigers are just trying to finish strong and make the best bowl game they can. A win over UNC would be Clemson's second ranked win in three weeks and would contribute to improving the overall attitude toward the season.

As a good game for Klubnik would be another sign Clemson could point to that the sophomore is getting better and positioning himself to lead Clemson to greater heights in the future. In other words, strong showings in the Tigers' final two games could show that those who anticipated Klubnik leading Clemson back to glory might not have been wrong, just early.

Christina Long covers the Clemson Tigers for the Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. You can follow her on Twitter @christinalong00 or email her at clong@greenvillenews.com.

This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Clemson football: Cade Klubnik has this to prove vs North Carolina