The Eccker 10 – Cade Klubnik

Clemson Football is a brand that resonates with every college football fan. Love them or hate them, fans know the orange tiger paw and the elite brand of football that it represents. To be a freshman football player in a program such as Clemson’s is a big deal. It’s an even bigger deal when you’re the starting quarterback.

That’s the reality faced by Clemson QB Cade Klubnik every day. Being the face of a national championship level program means having your every move scrutinized while managing the everyday grind of being a student-athlete with a personal brand to manage. Eccker Sports sat down with Klubnik to better understand how he is able to manage his day to day life as Clemson’s star QB in the NIL era.

10 Questions

Tyler: What is your greatest memory as an athlete?

Cade: The ACC championship game last year was really fun. Getting to celebrate with my family was great. That has to be one of my favorite memories so far..

Tyler: What is the biggest challenge you’ve faced as an athlete and how were you able to work past it?

Cade: It can be hard when you’re working the whole year, day in and day out for hours each day and you’re not seeing it pay off. Learning patience and learning how to continue to keep your head down and work is the most important thing I’ve learned. The other thing is just to remember that at the end of the day, it’s just a game and the biggest thing is to have fun.

Tyler: Do you have any unique or hidden talents?

Cade: I really don’t have any. I’ve been asked that question before and I just don’t have any.

Tyler: What was your first NIL deal?

Cade: It’s tough to remember my first actual one. My first bigger deal was with Rhoback, an apparel brand. That’s probably my first big one.

Tyler: How has NIL impacted your experience as an athlete?

Cade: I think it’s been really good. It’s been great for my parents to be able to help out and do a lot of the work for me and just let me play. I signed with an agency that handles a lot of that stuff for me. I get to say yes or no to things but I don’t have to do the dirty work of digging for deals on my own. I haven’t spent one penny of anything I’ve made. I’m just working on saving everything. Overall, it’s been good and I have a good circle around me advising me and helping me through it all.

Tyler: How do you determine which brands to partner with?

Cade: If they fit my character. If I ever end up signing with somebody, I want them to represent me well. I’m representing who they are and they represent who I am so it needs to be a good fit for me. It also needs to be something I enjoy. I don’t want to sign something just to sign something, I want to actually love the product. I factor everything in and make the best decision for me.

Tyler: How do you educate yourself on NIL?

Cade: Like I said earlier, I have an agency that I’ve signed with. They’re super helpful. They’re the best at what they do. They help me with so much. I’ll have things where I’ll think it’s a great idea and they can sit me down and walk me through why it may or may not be the best decision. The university is also really helpful. They run us through what we can and can’t do. I just make sure to do everything legally because I don’t want to ruin my eligibility.

Tyler: How has education played a role in your NIL experience?

Cade: The education process is something that goes on throughout the year. I’m always learning and the school and my agency do a good job keeping me updated on everything I need to know. It’s definitely an ongoing process.

Tyler: If you could change one thing about NIL and how it’s worked so far, what would it be?

Cade: I would say that it’s gotten into recruiting too much. I’m thankful I didn’t have to deal with any of that because I had already committed to Clemson and it was set in stone before NIL really got announced. It didn’t affect my recruitment at all but there are 15,16-year-old kids getting “promised” seven-figure deals to go to a school and then they’ll go and not get what they were promised. It’s messing up kids’ lives.

Coach Swinney says it all the time but more than anything, I think it’ll affect graduation rates. Guys can get more focused on the money in their bank account than the grades in their grade book. That’ll hurt them long term because, at the end of the day, money is just short term. .05% of athletes of all NIL athletes will benefit in the long term. You’ve got guys like Caleb Williams but outside of that, it’s short-term money that won’t last forever. I think guys get so set on what they can get and how fast they can get it rather than focusing on long-term benefits.

Tyler: What piece of advice would you give to high school athletes as they start their NIL journeys?

Cade: Nobody is going to pay you a dime if you can’t play. I told my parents and my agency that I wouldn’t do any deals until I’m the starting quarterback at Clemson University. I wanted to prove myself. I still feel like I have to prove myself. Do not rush the process. The more you do that before you’ve actually accomplished something, the more pressure you’re creating for yourself and the more pressure people will put on you because your name is attached to these deals. I’d say wait to do any deals until you’ve actually made a name for yourself. That’s when people actually want to work with you because you’ve proved that you’re a good player and you’ve created a character and a stage for yourself that you can monetize. If you haven’t accomplished anything, it’s not worth it. There’s no real rush so get to work as soon as you can and everything will follow.