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What I Learned From Watching Every Snap of Clemson QB Christopher Vizzina's Career After waiting in the wings for three seasons, redshirt junior Christopher Vizzina has an opportunity not many have: being the next great Clemson quarterback.
T Clemson quarterback Christopher Vizzina is expected to be the next starter for the program next season.
| USA TODAY Network via Reuters ConnectThe Birmingham, Ala.
, native was one of two quarterbacks from the 2023 class that head coach Dabo Swinney recruited.
The other one was Arch Manning, and everybody knows the fanfare that came with him.
A former top 10 quarterback in the cycle, now Vizzina has the opportunity to bring back Swinneys offense of old.However, weve been able to see a small sample size of what he can bring.
So, Ive watched his only start against SMU, and his sprinklings of snaps against Boston College and Furman in 2025, as well as Appalachain State in 2024.
Here are a few of the takeaways that I took from Vizzinas efforts.
Clemson running back David Eziomume fakes taking a handoff from Clemson quarterback Christopher Vizzina .| USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect Garrett Rileys offense saw plenty of motion and emphasis on screens, whether it was running backs or wide receivers.
A big factor in those plays was, if you faked the screen, you must sell it.
Vizzina did that brilliantly.
Look at belows touchdown grab from the quarterback to T.J.Moore, which was the first of three that he had against SMU.
He sells a screen to Antonio Williams and his other receiver is wide open on a skinny post.
He also did it in his redshirt freshman season against Appalachain State.
He sold a potential screen with his eyes to scamper away for a five-yard touchdown.Going from Riley to Chad Morris at offensive coordinator will mean that more motion will be present on offense.
Whether screens or read options, Vizzinas already showed how his eyes can pay off with big plays and scores.
Thats a positive entering his first season as the starter, and if hes the guy going into LSU, that eye control will be on display.Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnik consoles quarterback Christopher Vizzina after the game at Memorial Stadium in Clemson, S.C.
Saturday, October 18, 2025.
SMU won 35-24.
| USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect There wasnt much reluctancy with throwing over the middle for Vizzina in his start against the Mustangs.The tight end game was strong on that October night, and similar to Morriss philosophies, thats what will be on display in 2026.
Expect Christian Bentancur to play a massive role in this offense with his athleticism.
The redshirt sophomore had four receptions for 26 yards, but they came during important moments where Clemson needed yards.
Hook routes and seams up the middle were a benefit for the young quarterback to not have to do everything in the loss.Up the middle, Vizzina also had a wide open Bryant Wesco for a walk-in touchdown.
However, the receiver would end up dropping the pass that wouldve been his first touchdown of the game.
His first touchdown to Moore also came up the middle, and that will remain a strength in his game when going into 2026.
Clemson quarterback Christopher Vizzina runs from Clemson defensive end Stephiylan Green during the Spring football game in Clemson, S.C.Saturday, April 6, 2024.
| USA TODAY Network via Reuters ConnectWhen he ran with the ball, although he never went down on his own, he would always fall forward with defenders.
This was apparent alast November.
In limited snaps, the quarterback ran for only three carries for 16 yards, but it was a strong ground outing that helped showcase what he can do on the ground.Another positive was evading defenders.
This was present against SMU.
Although he was sacked four times, it could have been more if it werent for the way he moved around pass rushers while keeping both hands on the ball.
Vizzina finished that game with 15 carries for four yards, but without the sacks, its 22 yards on 10 carries.Thats a positive too, especially with how rushing the football in a big moment wasnt necessarily part of his recruiting game.
Every Clemson quarterback runs the football tough, even if youre as big as DJ Uiagalelei.
There will be designed quarterback runs, and weve seen that with the redshirt junior against inferior opponents.
Against Furman, App State and SMU, Vizzina had aborted snaps, which led to losses on early downs.There is the scapegoat that first-start jitters couldve been apparent with those instances, but if that happens early on in 2026, some could debate it about being an issue.
It didnt happen every time, especially during most of his touchdown passes, but some wobbly throws have caused receivers to change the way they have to track the ball.
That led to slower buildups when running after the catch.Of course, there is something to be said about playing your first college football game as a starting quarterback at home.
Especially at the crossroads that the Tigers were at against the Mustangs, being 3-3 and needing to win out to secure ACC Championship hopes, there was more pressure than any other game hes played in.
Some Morris mentorship and a full offseason under his belt can change that.That was just an observation that I saw with each game that hes played over the last three seasons.
Some of the issues that Vizzina had arent on him.
If you look at the SMU game, there was a lot that went wrong on offense that the players around him did, not the quarterback.
I mentioned the Wesco drop earlier, which was a walk-in score.Every offensive lineman that played gave up a pass rush from a defensive lineman, which either led to a sack or sent Vizzina out of the pocket.
That did include right tackle Blake Miller as well, who was a first-round NFL Draft pick.
Against Furman, Vizzina played in a beautiful lob pass to Adam Randall in the end zone, which was dropped as well.Clemsons offense is going to need plenty more fluidity if it wants to bring back the offense of old.
Thats an objective of Morriss, and if the Tigers can do that with a new-look offensive line, it will give him much more success in 2026.Long story short, Vizzina has the players around him to succeed, but it will be about how composed he can truly be during the big moments that will decide how great he can be at Clemson.
That starts with LSU, and although you might not see it right away, the Tiger signal caller can be very successful for the program next season.
Griffin is a communications major who was the Sports Editor for The Tiger at Clemson University.He led a team of 20+ reporters after working his way up through the ranks as a staff writer, sideline reporter, and assistant sports editor.