Heading into spring ball, ESPN ranked all 68 power-conference quarterbacks “based on stats, trends and recent performances.”
Clemson’s Christopher Vizzina landed at No. 52 in ESPN’s pre-spring QB rankings.
Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney said in late January that he is the one who made the decision not to sign a transfer quarterback this offseason, and that Vizzina — a former national top-50 prospect who has served as Cade Klubnik’s backup – entered spring practice in the “pole position” to take over as the Tigers’ starter in 2026.
Here’s what ESPN’s Bill Connelly wrote about Vizzina, who is entering his redshirt junior season:
“Vizzina was decent in his only career start — he threw for 317 yards and three TDs (albeit at just 6.4 yards per dropback) in a 35-24 loss to SMU — and having receivers T.J. Moore and Bryant Wesco Jr. at his disposal will help. But after only one top-40 finish in offensive SP+ in the past five seasons, the Clemson offense no longer gets the benefit of the doubt, and that doesn’t change with new/old offensive coordinator Chad Morris taking over — he hasn’t overseen a good college offense since 2017.”
Before enrolling at Clemson in January 2023, Vizzina was ranked among the nation’s top prospects in the 2023 recruiting class. The high four-star had more than 30 offers, including from some of the best football programs in the country.
Heading into 2026 after his first three years at Clemson from 2023-25, Vizzina has completed 61 percent of his passes for 596 yards and four touchdowns with one interception in 238 career offensive snaps across 14 games, while also rushing for 109 yards and a touchdown on 38 carries.
This past season, Vizzina appeared in five games, including his one start, and altogether completed 63.4 percent of his passes for 406 yards and four touchdowns with one interception, while also rushing for 41 yards on 25 carries.
Vizzina is the 12th-ranked ACC quarterback in ESPN’s rankings.
Ranked ahead of him are Miami’s Darian Mensah (No. 11), NC State’s CJ Bailey (No. 16), Cal’s Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele (No. 22), SMU’s Kevin Jennings (No. 23), Virginia Tech’s Ethan Grunkemeyer (No. 26), Virginia’s Beau Pribula (No. 29), Syracuse’s Steve Angeli (No. 32), Florida State’s Ashton Daniels (No. 38), Georgia Tech’s Alberto Mendoza (No. 41), Duke’s Walker Eget (No. 42) and Pitt’s Mason Heintschel (No. 46).
Clemson will open the 2026 season against LSU on Sept. 5 at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, La. Sam Leavitt, who transferred from Arizona State to LSU this offseason, is No. 14 in ESPN’s pre-spring QB rankings.
Of course, Clemson will end the 2026 regular season by hosting rival South Carolina at Memorial Stadium on Nov. 28. Gamecocks quarterback LaNorris Sellers checked in at No. 25 on ESPN’s list.