Texas A&M's Marcel Reed may be the next Cade Klubnik

Texas A&M quarterback Marcel Reed is stepping into the spotlight in what could be one of the most pivotal moments of his college career.

After leading the Aggies to an impressive comeback win over LSU, where he injected life into an otherwise struggling offense, all signs point to Reed potentially starting against South Carolina this week.

Reed, a redshirt freshman, has shown that he has the athleticism and ability to change the course of a game, as evidenced by his performance against LSU, where he guided five scoring drives in the second half alone.

The uncertainty surrounding Texas A&M’s quarterback situation stems from Conner Weigman’s inconsistent play, making Reed the likely choice for Mike Elko’s team. Elko, who has been noncommittal about a starting quarterback, hinted at Reed’s dynamic potential, noting how his unique style could provide the Aggies with the spark they need as they chase an SEC title.

That being said, Texas A&M fans may want to pause for a minute and consider the dynamics of what is being asked of Reed this weekend, should he be given the starting job.

Why Marcel Reed may be the next Cade Klubnik

Reed, a redshirt freshman, will be going on the road in a hostile environment against one of the better pass-rushes in the SEC. He was able to catch LSU off-guard and direct a come-from-behind win at home last week, for sure, but is the redshirt freshman really ready to be given the keys to the program yet? In some ways, this seems very reminiscent to a situation with a Texas native at another school: Cade Klubnik at Clemson.

Klubnik, a highly-recruited 5-star, came into Clemson with tons of hype. Many Tiger fans called for him to have the starting job, especially as DJ Uiagalelei began to struggle towards the middle part of the 2022 season. However, Klubnik was only used sparingly. That is, until the ACC Championship game.

After two abysmal drives from DJ Uiagalelei, freshman Cade Klubnik came into the game against No. 20 UNC — Clemson trailing, by the way — and led the Tigers on a touchdown drive. He would go on to be named the ACC Championship MVP and finished the night 21-of-32 passes for 219 yards with a touchdown and no interceptions and also added 44 yards and a rushing touchdown. Many Clemson fans thought they finally had their answer at quarterback.

Then, we see what happened next. It took Klubnik a full year of development as a sophomore starter in 2023, and many were beginning to believe he wouldn't be the guy. Coming into 2024, there were several national analysts calling for Clemson to bring in a quarterback from the Transfer Portal. Now, Klubnik is listed with Heisman odds and currently has one of the best QBRs in the country. He might very well be the most improved player in the nation.

It took development.

Not all quarterbacks come ready made. As a matter of fact, most don't. Klubnik wasn't truly ready to step into the spotlight in 2022 as a freshman. He caught UNC off-guard in the ACC Championship and gave Clemson a different dynamic than what DJ Uiagalelei could provide. But, that didn't mean he was ready to be handed over the keys. In the same way, Marcel Reed might still be developing too.

Is Marcel Reed ready to lead Texas A&M?

Reed is a redshirt freshman, so he already has a full year under his belt, but there are also clear signs he may not be quite ready yet to lead the Aggies on a College Football Playoff run just yet.

He is as dynamic with his legs as anyone we've seen, but let's not pretend he has been lethal in the passing game. Reed has only completed 55.6% of his passes this season for 655 yards (8.0 YPA). He hasn't thrown an interception, but he also hasn't taken many shots. Against LSU, he only threw the ball two times.

At some point, Texas A&M is going to need its passing game to win at the highest level, and it's fair to question if Reed can provide that, especially once teams have film on him and are familiar with what he wants to do in the run-option game.

Am I saying that Texas A&M should go back to Conner Weigman? Not necessarily. I'm just pointing out that there are a lot inflated expectations for Marcel Reed from both Texas A&M fans and national pundits that may not be fair to him this early in his career. Reed looked incredible running the ball against LSU, but the Aggies are going to need much more than that to win their remaining games, and Mike Elko knows this to be true.

Perhaps I'm wrong, but it seems the trajectory for Marcel Reed may be more similar to Cade Klubnik than people might want to think. Reed is going to be a very good player — with all the traits that Jayden Daniels possesses — given time to develop, but it remains to be seen if he's truly ready to carry the Aggies into the College Football Playoff and beyond.

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