Christopher Vizzina’s injury opened the door for Tait Reynolds to take charge for the Clemson Tigers in Week 3. While the quarterback got off to a turbulent start, Dabo Swinney praised his resilience, which ultimately gave his team the opportunity to mount a comeback against the North Carolina Tar Heels.
“How about this quarterback?” Swinney said during his postgame conference. “He was pretty bad in the first half and with a couple of things in the second. I mean, what a competitor. You saw a kid grow up tonight. He’s going to be a problem for a long time. And he ain’t going to do nothing but get better.”
Clemson bounced back from a tough start to the 2026 College Football season and improved its record to 2-1. Judging by Swinney’s comments, the team appears to be in good hands with Reynolds as its signal-caller.
An important comeback for Clemson
Clemson pulled off a gutsy 28-20 comeback victory over North Carolina after storming back from a 14-point deficit in a wild game that featured a massive two-and-a-half-hour fourth-quarter weather delay. Making his very first career start, Tait Reynolds showed incredible poise by settling in down the stretch, finishing his day 20-of-29 passing for 215 yards, one touchdown—a 27-yard strike to Christian Bentancur—and one interception.
Quarterback Tait Reynolds #2 of the Clemson Tigers looks to pass.
While the offense sputtered early on, Reynolds managed the game like a veteran after the storm cleared, helping fuel two late unanswered touchdown drives to secure his first win as a starter and give the Tigers a huge boost to open up ACC play 1-0.
What’s next for the Tigers?
Following that wild victory against UNC, the Clemson Tigers face a fascinating three-game stretch starting in Week 4. First up, they hit the road for a Friday night matchup at California, followed by a massive ACC rivalry clash back at home against Miami in Week 5.
After a Week 6 bye to regroup, they return to Memorial Stadium in Week 7 to host Charleston Southern. It’s a great mix of a long-distance road trip, a high-stakes conference battle, and a favorable non-conference tune-up.
