Clemson has a Heisman hopeful that no one seems to be talking about

Getting stomped in Week 1 is never great for a player's Heisman chances. Just ask Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnik, who had a brutal game in Week 1 against Georgia, when he posted just 142 passing yards, zero touchdowns and an interception. It was a terrible showing for Clemson, which lost 34-3.

Since that game? Clemson and Klubnik have been rolling. The Junior quarterback has thrown 17 touchdowns to just one pick in the five games since losing to Georgia, and he's using his legs more than ever before too, scoring four rushing touchdowns in those five games. For the season, Klubnik has passed for 1,528 yards, 17 touchdowns and two interceptions with a passer rating of 164.9.

Perhaps most importantly, Klubnik is leading No. 10 Clemson to wins. Big wins, actually, as none of those five games have been particularly close. Clemson's offense is humming right now with Klubnik at the helm, scoring 40+ points in four of the Tigers five wins. Klubnik wants that to be the norm, apparently.

Can Cade Klubnik move back into Heisman race?

At this point, Klubnik's chances at the Heisman rely just as much on other players as they do on himself. As hot as he's been, Cam Ward and — after Oregon's win over Ohio State — Dillon Gabriel are dominating the Heisman conversation for quarterbacks. Jalen Milroe is also trying to get back up in the conversation after a couple of down games from Alabama, and Quinn Ewers has a case simply by being the QB of the number-one team in the country.

That's just the quarterbacks, too. Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty has a pretty comfortable lead in the overall Heisman race at the moment and will maintain that lead if he keeps rushing for approximately 600 yards per game, which is what it feels like he's doing now.

Klubnik does have a leg up on a lot of these guys in the schedule department, though. Clemson has just one ranked game the rest of the season (November 16th against Pitt) and if the Tigers can win out or at least finish 10-2 with Klubnik maintaining this same level of productivity, it might be tough to deny him a spot as a finalist. Heading into Week 8, Klubnik has +1900 odds to capture the Heisman, according to FanDuel Sportsbook, eighth best in CFB. A few more big games and Klubnik will find himself among the top competitors for the most prestigious individual trophy in the sport.