How Clemson's QB Haul Solidifies It as a Title Contender for Years to Come

No Deshaun Watson?

No problem for Clemson and head coach Dabo Swinney.

Fresh off a thrilling 35-31 national title game win over Alabama, Watson jumped to the NFL and left a hole the size of Death Valley for Swinney to fill.

He's going to fill it with cement, because the incoming group of quarterbacks in the next two years could be the best in college football.

It starts with Hunter Johnson—a 4-star prospect out of Brownsburg, Indiana, who has the arm strength and pocket awareness to be a monster in the balanced Tigers offense. The 6'3 ½", 201-pounder is the fifth-best quarterback in the class of 2017 and has the mobility to be a force in the zone-read game that is such an integral part of the Clemson offense.

"Hunter Johnson may have the highest ceiling of any passer in the 2017 cycle," said Bleacher Report national recruiting analyst Sanjay Kirpalani. "He's a big-time athlete who can beat teams with his arm and legs. He fits Clemson's offense perfectly and he has a good chance to be the long-term replacement for Deshaun Watson."

Chase Brice, a 3-star athlete, will head to the Upstate this summer to contend for the spot formerly occupied by Watson.

Don't be fooled by the relatively low star rating. The 6'2", 207-pound Brice doesn't back down to anybody and was one of the best quarterbacks on the field at the Atlanta regional for The Opening in March 2016, when he looked fantastic in cold and windy conditions in Buford, Georgia.

In a loaded quarterback group, Brice and Georgia commit Jake Fromm were the only two signal-callers to land Elite 11 finals invitations following that event.

"Chase Brice is simply a field general who possesses the intangible qualities coaches love at that position," said Kirpalani. "He makes good decisions and gets the ball out of his hands quickly. He's a guy who played in and won a lot of big games on the prep level, including leading Grayson High School (Loganville, Georgia) to a state title as senior.

But wait, there's more.

Class of 2018 commit Trevor Lawrence from Cartersville, Georgia, is the best of the bunch, and can't wait to join this battle a year from now.

The top-ranked player in the next cycle, Lawrence's arm strength compares favorably to current Georgia signal-caller and former 5-star recruit Jacob Eason. His 6'6" frame allows him to see the whole field with ease, and he can stretch the field deep for the Tigers from the moment he steps on the practice field.

He's already racking up accolades and still has a year of high school football left to play.

In stockpiling highly rated quarterbacks, Clemson is following the same path as Alabama.

The Tigers already have Kelly Bryant and Zerrick Cooper—two touted recruits—on campus to contend for the starting job, have two more signing this week and Lawrence waiting in the wings. That's exactly what Alabama had in 2016, when true freshman Jalen Hurts joined a battle that already included Blake Barnett, Cooper Bateman and David Cornwell. 

All three players other than Hurts either transferred or planned on transferring, and were rated with four or more stars coming out of high school.

That's what elite programs do.

They find high school quarterbacks who feel they can be the best, stack them on top of each other and raise the level of play for the entire offense.

Clemson is an elite program now.

Not just because it can hoist that trophy, but because it has become a destination for the best players—and more importantly, the best QBs—in the country.

And it's going to be that way going forward.

Quotes obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Statistics courtesy of CFBStats and recruiting information courtesy of Scout unless otherwise noted. Barrett Sallee is the lead SEC college football writer and national college football video analyst for Bleacher Report as well as a host on SiriusXM. Follow Barrett on Twitter and Facebook.