Tait Reynolds joins exclusive Clemson company with win in first career start
Tait Reynolds didn't have to look very far to find things he could have done better in his first career start.
The Clemson true freshman also walked away from it with something only a select few quarterbacks in program history have accomplished.
A win.
Reynolds completed 20 of 29 passes for 215 yards and a touchdown, threw an interception, and added 26 rushing yards on 11 carries as Clemson rallied to defeat North Carolina in Reynolds' first career start Saturday at Memorial Stadium.
In doing so, Reynolds joined Deshaun Watson, Trevor Lawrence and DJ Uiagalelei as the only Clemson true freshman quarterbacks to win their starting debuts since the NCAA instituted permanent freshman eligibility in 1972.
Reynolds became only the ninth true freshman to start at quarterback for Clemson during that span, joining Steve Fuller, Willie Jordan, Patrick Sapp, Nealon Greene, Watson, Lawrence, Uiagalelei and Cade Klubnik.
He also became Clemson's earliest true freshman starting quarterback since Fuller started the second game of the 1975 season at Alabama and Jordan started Game 3 that year at Georgia Tech.
Reynolds said Dabo Swinney told him about the historical significance earlier in the week.
"Yeah, I mean, win or lose, I just wanna thank my Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ. I think it's a great opportunity to go out and just play," Reynolds said. "Coach Swinney told me that earlier in the week, but it doesn't matter if it's week three or week 12. We're just trying to get a win. I'm glad we were able to do that today."
Getting that win required Reynolds and the Clemson offense to work through some early struggles.
Clemson fell behind 14-3 in the first quarter and still trailed 17-15 entering the fourth. Reynolds acknowledged afterward that his first start included plenty of moments he would like to correct.
"I made a few mistakes at the beginning," Reynolds said. "It is what it is; we’ve just gotta bounce back from it. We caught a little rhythm there going into halftime, and it was good. I think our team needed a little momentum to just get going and hopefully it keeps going."
One of the biggest steps came late in the first half, when Reynolds helped direct an 18-play, 88-yard drive that ended with a Nolan Hauser field goal on the final play before halftime.
Then Reynolds delivered a career first in the third quarter.
He connected with tight end Christian Bentancur for a 27-yard touchdown, the first touchdown pass of Reynolds' Clemson career.
"Just playing within Coach Morris's system," Reynolds said. "I just kind of went through my read, and I saw that Christian was open, and I gave him the ball."
Asked about watching Bentancur finish the play in the end zone, Reynolds offered a much shorter assessment.
"Stud, stud, that's all I have to say," Reynolds said. "He's a beast, love being around him."
The defining stretch, however, came in the fourth quarter.
Clemson entered the period trailing and eventually used Gideon Davidson's eight-yard touchdown run with 5:01 remaining to take its first lead of the afternoon. Tyler Brown later added a 34-yard touchdown run in the final minute.
Reynolds credited the players around him for helping him navigate his first start.
"I have a lot of confidence; just get it to my playmakers," Reynolds said. "Like I said, great teammates, great coaches, everybody. I just get the ball to them and let them go do their thing."
That support wasn't limited to Clemson's offense.
Reynolds said defensive players approached him during the game to offer encouragement as the Tigers worked through the early deficit.
"The team kept me up," Reynolds said. "All the leaders that we have, I don't have to do too much all the time. They're always helping me. The defensive guys always encouraging me. Like, ‘hey man, we got your back. We know what you can do."
By the end of the afternoon, Reynolds had his first touchdown pass, his first victory as a starting quarterback and a place alongside Watson, Lawrence and Uiagalelei in Clemson's record book.
He also left Memorial Stadium thinking about how much better he can become.
"Everybody, all the coaches and everybody, they just kind of tell me I have to grow up, you know?" Reynolds said. "There's a lot of mistakes I made. I mean, just grow up a little bit and keep learning, and Coach [Tajh] Boyd always says, ' The only way is through, you know?"
For Reynolds, Saturday was his first chance to go through it as Clemson's starting quarterback.
And his first one ended with a win.
— Swanny
