Dabo Swinney didn’t leave much room for interpretation after Clemson’s 28-20 win over North Carolina on Sept. 19. Asked whether freshman Tait Reynolds had done enough to stay in the starting job, Swinney answered with one word:
"Absolutely."
That came after Reynolds made his first college start in a game where the Tigers (2-1) needed him to steady things after a rough opening stretch. Reynolds said he was "a little nervous" before kickoff, but he also helped Clemson finish strong against the Tar Heels (2-1).
The quarterback competition had been tightening for weeks as Christopher Vizzina struggled, and Reynolds got the nod for the North Carolina game. Swinney praised the freshman’s competitiveness and poise under pressure.
"He’s a competitor, and you saw it," Swinney said. "Some big‑time plays in a big environment.
You’re down 17‑3, and everything’s against you, to just have the toughness to keep believing; it’s hard to coach that. It’s hard to coach what he has."
Reynolds’ night was not clean from start to finish. Swinney said he was unhappy with the freshman’s first half, and Clemson’s offense sputtered early as a result.
The Tigers managed more than 10 yards only once on their first five drives. Swinney said Reynolds began to settle in on the sixth drive.
Before halftime, Reynolds completed 7 of 9 passes on a field-goal drive, but the sequence still ended with some missed opportunities. He had to spike the ball on second-and-goal and then throw it away on third-and-goal. He also missed a wide-open Olsen Patt-Henry to his right on the spike, then opened the second half by underthrowing a wide-open deep route that turned into an interception.
After that, though, Reynolds settled down. He said the early mistakes were part of the learning curve.
"I made a few mistakes at the beginning. It is what it is.
We just got to bounce back from it. We caught a little rhythm there going into halftime, and it was good," Reynolds said.
"I think our team needed a little momentum to just get going."
Clemson found that rhythm in the second half, with Reynolds leading two full-field touchdown drives and another 44-yard touchdown march. His first touchdown pass came on a fake screen-and-go to tight end Christian Bentencur, who caught it for 27 yards in the third quarter.
Reynolds finished 20 of 29 for 215 yards with one touchdown and one interception. He said the message around him was simple.
"Everybody, all the coaches, everybody just told me I have to grow up," Reynolds said. "There's a lot of mistakes I made. Just grow up a little bit and keep learning."
Vizzina’s injury remained part of the backdrop, even if Swinney insisted the quarterback decision was about performance. Vizzina hurt his elbow against Georgia Southern and did not dress against North Carolina. Swinney said earlier this week that Reynolds earned the start on merit, not because of the injury situation.
Still, Clemson was without its veteran backup. Swinney said he initially believed on Sept. 13 that Vizzina would be ready, but the swelling in the elbow worsened on Sept.
- After that, Vizzina never got to the point where he could grip the football properly.
"The swelling, and then having to drain it, kind of gave him a setback, and he just never could get where he could secure the ball," Swinney said, before adding that he believes the injury is a short-term one.
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