Despite being off to his worst start as the Tigers’ HC, Clemson’s Dabo Swinney was so positive entering the Week 12 game. That positivity shown on the field couldn’t stop the Tigers from walking out with a 20-19 win against Louisville on Friday night, leaving the HC amazed. “What a game…bunch of crazy moments,” said Swinney. But that didn’t hold back the HC from clearing up QB Cade Klubnik’s mistake.

Surely, winning this game gave Clemson (5-5) a chance to become bowl-eligible, but Swinney seemed unsatisfied with the team’s performance. As Clemson beat writer Chapel Fowler shared on X, “Dabo Swinney says the back-to-back fumbles at the goal line were a ‘debacle.'” Then came the take on QB’s flaw. “He confirms that on fourth down, QB Cade Klubnik was supposed to hand the ball to RB Adam Randall, and instead he tried to hand it off to FB Peter Woods for some reason.'”

On third down, Clemson was inches from the end zone when chaos struck. DB Peter Woods fumbled at the 1-yard line, but the Tigers managed to recover. Disaster hit again on fourth down when Klubnik fumbled the handoff to Woods, and Louisville snatched the ball. With that, while Louisville got a 19-13 lead with 11:26 left, the tension was through the roof.

But that’s not all, as the Cardinals gashed Clemson with their rushing attack, picking up 59 of their 75 yards. “We only had one sack, but it was big. It was big,” said Swinney. “Sammy Brown… that sack right there was big time, because it obviously pushed them back, and we ended up missing the field goal.” Yet, they somehow manage to win because of the special team.

As the Clemson HC said, “To me, special teams won this game.” However, Klubnik showed some brilliance, despite having battled through injuries all season, completing 22 of 34 passes for 187 yards against the Cardinals. His effort didn’t go unnoticed, as he ranks in the top 30 QBs in the Power 4. Even ESPN writer Bill Connelly acknowledged his struggles, but also the comeback.

“It happened too late to save Clemson’s season in any major way… but in October, Cade Klubnik officially became Cade Klubnik again… This will always go down as a massively disappointing season, but Klubnik did show up, at least,” wrote Connelly.

Now, with the win over Louisville, while the Tigers dodged their worst ACC record under Swinney, hitting .500 for the first time since Week 2, it became an emotional win for Klubnik.

Dabo Swinney’s QB is in a heavy heart after the win

Cade Klubnik’s stats tell the story of a turnaround. Although the senior QB’s first four games produced a 44.9 total QBR and 11.2 yards per completion. But in the last four, he skyrocketed to an 89.6 QBR and 12.5 yards per completion. While injuries have slowed him, when healthy, Klubnik has proven he can lead Clemson at a high level. But this season will end his journey with Clemson.

That’s why after the win, when the QB was asked about his feelings, he didn’t hold back his emotions. “Another opportunity to go play with the guys who have lived life. To play with Ryan, Antonio, Adam, and Tristan and all these guys,” said Klubnik. “You know, it’s probably going to gonna be my last time ever being teammates, and two weeks from now, we’re all gonna be in different parts.”

Still, Klubnik remains hopeful and is looking ahead. “It gives us an opportunity to go play and spend a few more weeks together,” said the Clemson QB. ” I think that’s really why this game meant so much.”

With two games remaining against Furman and South Carolina, Klubnik has little time to spend with the team. But winning is still the mission, as Clemson wants to become bowl-eligible.