ESPN analyst Greg McElroy believes Clemson’s Cade Klubnik is the best quarterback in the country heading into 2025.

On an episode of his Always College Football show, McElroy gave his top 10 quarterbacks entering the upcoming season and ranked Klubnik at No. 1 on the list.

As a junior last season, Klubnik completed 63.4 percent of his passes for 3,639 yards and 36 touchdowns with six interceptions, while rushing for 463 yards and seven more scores on the ground.

Klubnik was one of two quarterbacks in the country to throw for more than 3,500 yards and run for 400 last season. Klubnik also finished second nationally in total touchdowns with 43. He was third nationally in touchdown passes with 36, and his six interceptions were second fewest among quarterbacks who threw 28 or more touchdown passes in 2024.

“I thought last year he did an amazing job,” McElroy said. “Threw for 3,600 yards, 36 touchdowns against six interceptions, 63 percent completion. He went for 463 yards on the ground, including seven rushing touchdowns. I loved how much he improved from 2023. So, I’m banking on that improvement only growing more significantly with another year developing a rapport with what I think is an outstanding wide receiver corps, and that’s going to really help Cade Klubnik reach his potential this year.

“He improved his touchdowns thrown by 17. He also had 13 touchdowns on deep balls, which is number one in the country. He can beat you in a lot of different ways.”

Klubnik was the subject of some criticism during a rocky first full season as Clemson’s starting quarterback in 2023, before breaking out with a career year in the 2024 campaign, and the way he overcame adversity is another reason why McElroy has the former five-star prospect from Texas at the top of his QBs list.

“I don’t just believe in his ability. I believe in his mental toughness,” McElroy said. “When you are the golden goose and you get criticized and you live to tell the tale, put your head down and then come back in ’24 and you’re one of the best players in the country – that’s a guy who I want on my team. Tells me a lot about what this young man is made of and what he’s going to do this year.”

McElroy ranked Klubnik ahead of Oklahoma’s John Mateer (No. 2), Arizona State’s Sam Leavitt (No. 3), Penn State’s Drew Allar (No. 4) and LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier (No. 5).

Miami’s Carson Beck (No. 6), South Carolina’s LaNorris Sellers (No. 7), Baylor’s Sawyer Robertson (No. 8), Florida’s DJ Lagway (No. 9) and Georgia Tech’s Haynes King (No. 10) round out McElroy’s top 10.

Clemson is slated to face Nussmeier, Sellers and King during the 2025 regular season. You can hear McElroy’s commentary on each of his top 10 QBs in the following video: