PARADISE VALLEY, Ariz. — After working behind Deshaun Watson and Nick Schuessler over the past two seasons and improving his all-around skillset, Kelly Bryant is confident in his abilities as a quarterback and excited to showcase his talents in the spring when he will enter as Clemson’s No. 1 quarterback.

“I’m excited,” Bryant said during Thursday’s Fiesta Bowl Media Day. “We still have business to take care of here, but when it comes, I’ll be excited. It’ll be full speed, and I’ll be ready.”

The former four-star prospect from Calhoun Falls, S.C., has benefited from the repetitions he has received in practice and become a better and more consistent passer. The game has slowed down mentally for Bryant, who is beginning to make better reads and be more decisive with the football.

“I’m becoming more of a polished passer,” Bryant said. “A lot of people see that I can run a lot. I just want to be more of a consistent and confident passer to expand my game more and become a total quarterback, rather than an athlete at the position.”

Bryant has rushed for 178 yards on 35 career carries (5.1 average) while completing 13 of 18 passes for 75 yards and a touchdown.

As a senior at Wren High School in 2014, Bryant went 231-368 passing for 3,579 yards and 41 touchdowns along with 720 yards and 14 touchdowns on 128 carries.

The 6-foot-3, 215-pounder has always been a dynamic athlete and playmaker with his legs, and the talent he possesses is undeniable.

And like many of his peers, Bryant has aspirations of continuing his career in the NFL after Clemson.

“It’s always been a dream of mine since I was a kid,” Bryant said. “That’s a process. It takes a lot of steps to get towards that point. I’m just trying to take one step at a time.”

The next step for Bryant is winning what will be a highly competitive quarterback battle in the spring. Though Bryant will go into spring practice as the first-team quarterback and take first-team reps, the talented trio of redshirt freshman Zerrick Cooper, incoming five-star freshman Hunter Johnson and rising sophomore Tucker Israel will all get their opportunities to make a claim for the starting job.

In the scenario that Bryant is beaten out for the starting role, his path to the next level might be via a different position.

Bryant could possibly be open to a potential position change. But right now, he isn’t thinking about that and intends to play quarterback.

“That hasn’t gotten to the point where I’ve thought about it like that,” Bryant said. “I’m just trying to see how the spring goes, trying to take advantage of my opportunity. I know I can be a quarterback here, but if it comes down to that, then I’ll take the process with that. But right now I’m not trying to think about any of that.”

Bryant’s focus is solely on continuing to improve as a quarterback and trying to win the starting job.

Being around Deshaun Watson on a regular basis for the past two years, Bryant has learned a lot both on and off the field.

“All the younger guys — me, Nick, James and Zerrick — he’s been a tremendous leader,” Bryant said, “helping us out on the field with all our progressions, reads, knowing what to watch for, looking at film, all the different coverages and blitzes.

“But also the biggest thing I can take from him off the field is how he carries himself out in the public, out on campus, how he handles people wanting autographs. It’s really been neat watching these last two years. So, he’s been a really tremendous resource and help in the time he’s been here.”

With Watson on his way to the NFL and Schuessler departing, Bryant will soon be the veteran leader in the quarterback meeting room.

He’s excited to do his part to make those around him better as he tries to prove he’s the player that can lead Clemson’s offense.

“It’s kind of crazy to think I’ll be the oldest one with the most experience,” Bryant said. “I’m going to take what they’ve instilled in me these last two years and try to help them as well. I know they will have some things I can learn from as well from them, but it’ll be a neat experience going into the spring in the meeting room.”