AUSTIN, Texas — When the primary 12-team College Football Playoff bracket was revealed, Cade Klubnik took one take a look at the display, rubbed his brow and laughed. He knew instantly what it meant.
The Austin native could be returning to his hometown to steer No. 12 Clemson in opposition to No. 5 Texas on Saturday (4 p.m. ET, TNT/Max), and instantly, Texas highschool soccer followers celebrated the rematch of one of the crucial hyped quarterback conferences within the state’s wealthy historical past.
In January 2021, Klubnik and his Austin Westlake staff beat Quinn Ewers and Southlake Carroll 52-34 within the 6A Division II state championship recreation at AT&T Stadium in Arlington in a matchup of two elite prospects. Both had been initially in the identical class, ranked because the No. 1 and No. 2 quarterbacks within the state, with Ewers rated No. 1 nationally as effectively, incomes one of many highest grades of all time for a recruit. Ultimately, Ewers would reclassify and skip his senior yr of highschool, heading to Ohio State earlier than transferring to Texas.
Both performed for legendary highschool packages: Westlake has received 4 state championships whereas Southlake has eight. And each QBs performed for Dodges — Todd Dodge and his son Riley — with Todd among the many most honored highschool coaches in Texas historical past, whose affect on soccer within the state has led to this second. The “Dodge Bowl,” because it was identified, turned the primary time in historical past a father coached in opposition to his son for a state title in Texas.
“The factor I keep in mind in regards to the recreation is the primary two possessions I went, ‘Damn, I shared an excessive amount of data with my son by way of the years,” Todd mentioned. “Because he is aware of precisely methods to assault our protection.'”
In that recreation, Michael Taaffe caught passes from each quarterbacks. “He was like Travis Hunter for us by way of the playoffs,” Todd mentioned of the two-way star who caught 5 passes from Klubnik in opposition to Southlake, and intercepted Ewers twice, incomes defensive MVP honors. Fortunately for Ewers now, Taaffe is on his facet as an All-American security for the Longhorns.
For two groups which have by no means met in faculty soccer historical past, the Clemson-Texas recreation has ties that run deep.
“It feels somewhat bizarre watching on tape, watching Cade, figuring out that he was my quarterback for a few years and now I’m enjoying in opposition to him,” Taaffe mentioned this week. “It’s going to be so enjoyable.”
Taaffe says they texted one another that they beloved one another this week. Then he and Klubnik, who he mentioned first performed collectively in third or fourth grade, began on the point of face off.
“He’s going to do no matter it takes,” Taaffe mentioned. “I do not assume that there is going to be loads of sliding out of Cade come Saturday. There’s most likely not going to be loads of stepping out of bounds, particularly if he sees 16 [Taaffe’s number]. He’s going to attempt to impose his will on me. He’s undoubtedly going to attempt to decrease his shoulder on me and he will inform me about it too. I’m going to be prepared for that and … I’m going to be able to decrease my shoulder on him.”
THE FIRST ON-CAMPUS playoff recreation in FBS historical past in Texas that includes two of the state’s largest quarterback prospects is an actual conundrum for Brad Thomas, the lead pastor at Austin Ridge Church. High college soccer is also known as a faith in Texas, one thing Thomas is presently navigating.
Thomas, a South Carolina native and a Clemson grad, went to seminary in Dallas, met his spouse Courtney in Texas and stayed. He’s been in Austin for 20 years now. The Klubnik household has been members of his church all the time, and Ewers has attended since he is been in Austin. Thomas was launched to Ewers within the church lobby for the primary time by Klubnik.
“This might be the worst-case situation for me as a pastor of a church that primarily consists of UT folks,” Thomas joked. “If Clemson wins the sport, I most likely must discover a job. If we lose the sport, we most likely must discover a job.”
Klubnik, in the meantime, might be enjoying in opposition to six former Westlake gamers on the Texas roster, acknowledging that it will be unusual to land on the Austin airport and bus over to a lodge in his hometown as a customer. He joked this week that he heard from so many individuals it might’ve been good to have a flip telephone to chop down on the distractions however was excited in regards to the rematch together with his previous pal.
“Quinn and I am going manner again,” Klubnik mentioned. “We performed one another in seventh grade and 7-on-7 and stuff. And then met my junior yr within the state championship recreation, and it was undoubtedly a really high-profile recreation.”
The two even frolicked in California on the Elite 11 quarterback competitors once they had been in highschool, with each Dodges going to help their stars and the households having dinner collectively.
“It’s undoubtedly cool for positive,” Ewers mentioned this week. “Me and Cade have a very good relationship and he is a cool dude and it’s undoubtedly cool to get to play one another once more. It’s come full circle and whatnot.”
Todd Dodge mentioned the 2 quarterbacks are completely different, every together with his personal type.
“They’re most likely about as reverse of personalities as you may ever get,” he mentioned. “Cade is fairly high-strung and a rah-rah chief type of man, getting his staff fired up. Quinn’s type of Cool Hand Luke. Their groups want each of these issues.”
Klubnik’s mother and father went to Texas A&M however mentioned Cade did not develop up with the rivalry because it was on hiatus, so any sense of enjoying Texas is extra of hometown pleasure than any animosity.
With Texas targeted on Ewers, Dodge mentioned the Aggies had been those who had been surprisingly off the radar, just because Jimbo Fisher did not appear .
“If anyone missed out on Cade Klubnik within the state of Texas, it was Texas A&M,” Dodge mentioned. “They simply did not present any curiosity. Everybody else within the nation did, however they did not.”
So Texas coach Steve Sarkisian talked about being stunned when Klubnik appeared targeted on Clemson throughout recruiting.
“Big fan of Cade,” Sarkisian mentioned. “[But] he all the time had a dream of going to Clemson.”
Thomas, who proudly preached in an orange go well with after Clemson received nationwide championship video games, hopes he can take somewhat credit score.
“We’ve had about 20 to 25 youngsters from Austin Ridge go to Clemson within the final, I’d say six years, and most of the athletes, I actually really feel like I ought to be [getting] a kickback or one thing. I’ve been doing subliminal messaging for about 18 years.”
Thomas is aware of of rivalries. His daughter Lydia graduated from Texas. Courtney graduated from Oklahoma. The Thomas household has a flagpole exterior their home with Clemson, Texas and OU flags on it, stacked so as of who’s driving the very best for the time being. He’s hoping Clemson orange might be waving over burnt orange within the hierarchy after this weekend.
“I’m excited to observe these youngsters play,” Thomas mentioned. “I grew up close to Clemson and in order that’s simply been a part of my entire life. I’m completely enthusiastic about this recreation and I’m going to be carrying my Clemson garb surrounded by Horns.”
EVEN THE COACHES have shared experiences with the quarterbacks. Clemson coach Dabo Swinney recalled his solely go to to Darrell Okay Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium this week. It was alongside Sarkisian watching Westlake and Klubnik beat Austin Vandegrift 70-7 in a playoff quarterfinal on campus at Texas.
“The solely time I’ve been at a recreation at this stadium, I really stood in the long run zone with Sark and watched Cade play,” Swinney mentioned.
That was a significant recreation for Todd Dodge, a former Longhorns quarterback, as effectively.
“It’s really the primary time I’d ever received to teach on the place that I performed at,” he mentioned. “Cade had an enormous recreation, however I’ll always remember it was the primary time Dabo had seen him play in particular person.”
Todd Dodge turned the primary Texas highschool soccer participant to throw for greater than 3,000 yards in 1980 earlier than enjoying for Texas and turning into a legendary highschool coach together with his fingerprints throughout this matchup.
From 2000 to 2002, he went 19-10 within the suburbs of Dallas-Fort Worth at Southlake earlier than he turned it right into a machine. From 2002 to 2006, the Carroll Dragons went 79-1, with solely a 16-15 loss to Katy within the 2003 state championship recreation. He coached stars like Alabama’s Greg McElroy, Missouri’s Chase Daniel and handed alongside a lot to his son, Riley, who dedicated to Texas, however adopted Todd when he took the job at North Texas and performed there.
“He’s a legend,” Cade’s mother, Kim Klubnik, mentioned. “He’s a strolling, residing legend and his son is just too.”
Garrett Riley, Klubnik’s present offensive coordinator, who was the offensive coordinator at SMU on the time of the Westlake-Southlake title recreation close by at AT&T Stadium, mentioned he remembers the anticipation across the Ewers-Klubnik heavyweight struggle.
“Knowing all people’s story and the way they had been introduced up and the excessive faculties that they went to, I simply have a deep appreciation for his or her story, actually each of them,” he mentioned. “We weren’t actually within the combine for ’em at the moment. I keep in mind when the 2 Dodges performed one another. I keep in mind watching the sport on TV, loads of anticipation. I used to be actually tuned in to observe the father-son battle. And oh, by the best way, you bought these two extremely touted elite quarterbacks main the cost for each groups.”
Riley, who grew up in West Texas, mentioned the Dodge affect and the Southlake mystique — all of them dye their hair blonde for the playoffs as an indication of staff unity — was an enormous a part of his teaching upbringing too.
“I keep in mind being in little ol’ Muleshoe, watching Fox Sports Southwest and watching the state championship video games on TV and seeing the bleached hair and them throwing the ball all around the yard. It was superior. Those quarterbacks had been all the time actually good, so I do not forget that vividly.”
So it will be an enormous recreation for Riley too. And he is aware of his quarterback goes to be soaking all of it in.
“Cade might know 60 % of the gang that is going to be there that evening,” Riley mentioned. “It’ll be a fairly particular night for him.”
WHEN THE PAIRING was first introduced, Swinney known as the sport the “Mukuba Bowl.”
Texas security Andrew Mukuba, an Austin native who performed for 3 years at Clemson earlier than transferring again house, mentioned he and Klubnik had been “locker buddies” once they had been on the identical staff.
“The solely two guys from Austin, Texas, so we clicked somewhat bit,” Mukuba mentioned, who added that his former teammates have been “type of speaking loopy,” in textual content messages.
“It’s good to undergo that with them,” Mukuba mentioned. “I used to be on the identical facet with them at one level. But it is going to be thrilling now.”
Taaffe mentioned Mukuba’s story cannot be missed among the many quarterbacks. The large hitter who knocked Georgia quarterback Gunner Stockton‘s helmet off within the SEC championship recreation is locked in.
“There’s so many storylines about Quinn, about Cade, about myself, however Andrew, I imply these are all his guys,” Taaffe mentioned. “He is aware of each single one among them as a result of I could possibly be mistaken, however I do not suppose Clemson will get folks out of the portal. Literally he is aware of each single man from that staff. … It’s going to be an fascinating recreation for him, however he is undoubtedly prepared. I imply, he is going the additional mile to be prepared for this recreation and he will do what he does.”
But Taaffe has his personal motivations. Most notably, enjoying in opposition to Klubnik.
Taaffe mentioned he and Klubnik cast a bond throughout COVID-19, with Taaffe even working together with his QB to be taught the offense.
Taaffe additionally labored out for 2 hours for greater than 100 straight days with Mukuba and Jahdae Barron, this yr’s Thorpe Award winner, all Austin DBs who now star collectively on the nation’s top-ranked move protection. Then, he would spend time studying the main points of the passing recreation with Klubnik.
“I had 22 hours of the day left, and me and Cade had been throwing the ball, working routes and determining each single avenue methods to win the state championship,” Taaffe mentioned. “That’s how me and Cade type of took off. We had nothing to do however turn into greatest buddies as a result of we had been making an attempt to go win a state championship.”
He mentioned he is aware of Klubnik’s tendencies. But he mentioned Klubnik is aware of his too.
“He’s going to most likely present me one factor that they’ve accomplished on movie 100 occasions and it is going to be the other,” he mentioned. But he isn’t conflicted about what he must do.
“I’m a competitor irrespective of who it’s,” Taaffe mentioned. “My job is to take my opponent’s soul. That’s what I attempt to do, irrespective of if it is my greatest pal or the man that I hate essentially the most on this planet.”
TOD AND KIM Klubnik, who retired when Cade went to varsity and purchased an RV to observe Clemson to each recreation, have made loads of buddies out that manner. They’ve spent the week dealing with suggestions for Austin BBQ or Mexican eating places. “One factor that is been actually candy is how type our Longhorn buddies have been to us this week, providing to assist get tickets or no matter we want,” Kim mentioned. “They’ve simply been actually type and we actually, actually admire our Longhorn buddies proper now.”
Thomas is worked up to see the 2 quarterbacks play on a large stage after enduring their share of criticism over the previous couple of seasons.
“People had been wanting Cade to get within the portal after his sophomore yr. They anticipated Cade to be Trevor Lawrence. Well, he isn’t Trevor Lawrence,” Thomas mentioned. “People need Quinn to depart each recreation. They anticipate all people to be Colt McCoy or Vince [Young]. The Texas followers are calling for Arch to play. I’ve watched each of those youngsters deal with this with such grace and such persistence and perseverance. So I believe that is additionally a chance for these two youngsters to be on the identical area and simply be who they’re, which is admittedly cool.”
Both Dodges have mentioned Texas’ grueling highschool playoff schedule — the one state the place groups play as much as a 16-game season — and the eye that comes with being a star of their packages have ready them for this second.
“I’d be extra shocked in the event that they weren’t in most of these video games of their faculty profession,” Riley Dodge informed Dave Campbell’s Texas Football. “Both battled by way of adversity and doubters. They each went to work and dealt with their day-to-day and got here out higher for it. Playing in large packages below a highlight set them up for fulfillment.”
They’re each extraordinarily near their quarterbacks and say they’re among the many best the state has ever produced.
“Riley and Quinn have an amazing relationship,” Todd Dodge mentioned. “They keep up a correspondence in the identical manner I do with Cade. Those two quarterbacks, what a matchup and what nice gamers, I’m so happy with each of them as they lead their groups into the school playoffs.”
Still, like Taaffe, he is received to observe Klubnik going up in opposition to his Longhorns.
“Yeah, there will be some blended feelings going this week,” Todd mentioned. “But the gorgeous factor is how a lot enjoyable it is going to be.”
