Aug 27, 2025 6:08 PM EDT
The first full week of the 2025 college football season features a handful of marquee matchups, including No. 9 LSU heading northeast to play No. 4 Clemson.
This early matchup of top-ranked Tigers will obviously have an impact on the College Football Playoff landscape right off the bat, but it’s also a showdown between to quarterbacks who could both contend to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
For Clemson, it’s Cade Klubnik, who came into the college ranks as a five-star recruit with sky-high expectations. His first two seasons were a mixed back full of inconsistency, as Klubnik struggled to live up to the hype on a week-to-week basis.
But the switch appeared to flip for Klubnik last season, as he found his groove and looked like a completely different quarterback. He tallied 3,639 yards and 36 touchdowns through the air, with just six interceptions, adding 463 yards and seven more scores on the ground. More importantly for NFL scouts, Klubnik looked much more calm and collected in the pocket, making better decisions with the football, improving his accuracy and ball placement, and creating big plays downfield when things broke down around him.
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Last year, the 6-2, 210-pound Klubnik already started to show the impressive combination of physical traits, mental prowess, and mechanical polish that should have NFL teams excited about his future as a potential franchise passer at the next level. If that trend continues in the same direction this season, it won’t be surprising if he ends up the top quarterback on the board for many of those clubs.
Meanwhile in Baton Rouge, the Bayou Bengals have their own star under center in Garrett Nussmeier.
A four-star recruit coming out of high school, finally got his first opportunity as the full-time starter for the Tigers last season after three years of bench duty, and the results were well worth the wait. The 6-1, 205-pounder racked up over 4,000 yards passing, tossing 29 touchdowns and rushing for three more.
Despite a lack of ideal size for a pocket passer, Nussmeier still gets the job done with clean mechanics and arm strength that backs up his confidence that now tight window or challenging throw is off-limits.
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Much like Klubnik prior to last season, the key for Nussmeier moving forward will be improving his consistency, particularly when it comes to decision-making and taking care of the football. After throwing 12 interceptions last season, Nussmeier needs to prove he can take those calculated chances down the field without putting the ball in harm’s way.
The 2026 draft class could be loaded with tons of top talent at quarterback, if everyone who’s eligible for entry decides to make the leap. Texas’ Arch Manning is obviously the biggest domino in that group, but even if he decides to return to Austin for the 2026 season, there will be a long list of contenders for the No. 1 overall pick alongside the likes of Klubnik and Nussmeier, including South Carolina’s LaNorris Sellers and Penn State’s Drew Allar.
Quarterbacks don’t directly play against one another on the field at the same time, but that doesn’t stop even the best NFL passers from being weighed and measured against one another when their teams face off under the bright lights in the biggest games. Klubnik and Nussmeier won’t be defending one another, but their team’s success this weekend will absolutely depend on their ability to out-duel one another when their team has the ball, scoring every time they get the chance, and forcing the other to match them every step of the way.
If these two blue-chip prospects live up to their potential Saturday, we should be in for an instant classic. It’ll also be an early audition that could have a big impact on where both of them land on draft weekend when April rolls around.
About the Author
Luke Easterling
NFL Draft analyst
Luke is the NFL Draft analyst for Athlon Sports, with more than two decades of experience covering college football, the NFL, and the NFL Draft.