CLEMSON – With the start of a new season, especially after several key players exited the program this offseason, Clemson players will look to new leaders to guide them through summer practices and into the 2026 season.

As usual, that leadership will start with the quarterback position, and with three-year starter Cade Klubnik off to the New York Jets, redshirt junior Christopher Vizzina is the frontrunner to take over the role, according to head coach Dabo Swinney.

“(Vizzina) was the lead horse coming in,” Swinney said after the Orange & White Spring Game in March. “He’s still got the pole position.” 

In the spring game, Vizzina led all quarterbacks with 95 passing yards and one touchdown. It was just the second time he ran down the hill to lead Clemson’s first-team players after enrolling at Clemson in January of 2023.

After 3.5 years in the program, Tiger players know what to expect from the Birmingham, Ala., native on and off the field, even though he has made just one start, which came in a loss to SMU last October.

“CV has definitely been a huge inspiration to especially me and all the O-line because he was obviously behind Cade last year, but even through that he stayed true to himself, like he still motivated the team,” projected left tackle Brayden Jacobs said.

Jacobs also made his first career start in the SMU game, manning the left tackle position as Vizzina threw for 317 yards and three touchdowns. Vizzina completed 69 percent of his passes, and did not throw an interception in the defeat. 

Since then, Jacobs says, his quarterback has taken the next step as a leader on the field.

“Now that he’s the quarterback, he has been very commanding, but not in a mean way,” Jacobs said. “He’s just been pulling everyone together, calling plays and fitting his role.”

This spring, it was not just Jacobs that had praise for Vizzina and his steps toward taking over a starting role. In a press conference after several weeks of practice and leading up to the spring game, Tigers’ offensive coordinator Chad Morris also dished out praise for the 6-foot-4 athlete.

“(Vizzina’s) just been able to show just his comfort level,” Morris said. I’ve been really impressed with how he’s progressed, as the whole team has offensively, how he’s progressed as a quarterback and his comfort level… I’ve been really pleased with watching him through the course of this spring.”

According to Swinney at the conclusion of spring practice, Vizzina is still in close competition with true freshman Tait Reynolds for the starting job after the rookie impressed coaches and players alike through March. 

Unlike Reynolds, who joined the Tigers for the first time this January, Vizzina has the advantage of knowing his teammates closely. And with those close relationships, players have found extra pride in watching his development.

“I’m so excited for him,” center Harris Sewell said about his roommate of three years. “He’s waited a long time for this and I’ve seen his confidence grow tremendously and he’s doing a great job. He’s just being himself.

“I know who he is and he’s just being himself around everybody. So, it’s been great.”

Vizzina’s growth has also been evident to wide receiver Tyler Brown, another 2023 enrollee with a chance to make a leap in playing time and production this season. Brown noted that the potential starter has been more patient in the pocket and mature since the Tigers last practiced in the fall.

Like Sewell, Brown has known Vizzina for almost half a decade, far before he was in any conversation to be Clemson’s leader.

“When I think about it, these are all the guys that I came in with and kind of grew close to,” Vizzina said. “So when I look out there, especially on the offensive line and the receivers, like I mean these are the guys I’ve been hanging out with since freshman year. So, just like the chemistry and everything I’ve been really excited about and then just the buy-in from everybody makes you really excited.”

That chemistry will be on full display for the first time Sept. 5, when the Tigers will head down to Baton Rouge, La., to take on LSU. While it is not certain who will be the starting quarterback, Vizzina has certainly made a case with his teammates that he can command a leading role.