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CLEMSON — Pick a time, date and place, and Clemson football freshman quarterback Tait Reynolds is ready to compete.
Growing up the second-youngest of six siblings and youngest of three brothers in Queen Creek, Arizona, the location was often the nearby park by the Reynolds' home.
He would play with or against his brothers, Trey and Porter Reynolds, with the goal of not being overshadowed by the older duo.
"(He) saw how hard they worked, and he was right there with them doing everything he could to stand out," Paul Reynolds, Tait Reynolds' father, told The Greenville News. "He always felt like he was as good as them."
So, when Tait Reynolds, 6-foot-2 and weighs 215 pounds, enrolled at Clemson in January and was thrust into a starting quarterback competition for the 2026 season, he wasn't overwhelmed.
The three-star signee, who has expressed interest in pursuing both football and baseball, beat out redshirt freshman Chris Denson, graduate Trent Pearman and signee Brock Bradley in the spring to be the Tigers' No. 2 quarterback.
Reynolds' next challenge is overtaking redshirt junior Christopher Vizzina in preseason practice to be the team's starter under offensive coordinator Chad Morris before Clemson's season opener against LSU on Sept. 5.
"We came out of the spring, (Vizzina) one, and (Reynolds) two. It's not close," Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said March 28 after Clemson's spring game. "Those two guys separated, and that's just where we are."
Growing up, baseball was Reynolds' primary focus. He started on the varsity baseball team in high school and committed to Arizona State that same year.
However, he reopened his commitment in June 2024 to explore his football options after having a standout sophomore season as a full-time starting quarterback.
MORE: Dabo Swinney's unresolved questions after Clemson football spring practice
Reynolds completed 54.2% of his passes for 1,808 yards, 11 touchdowns and 11 interceptions, and rushed for 631 yards and 17 scores.
"He's probably the best athlete I've ever coached , just from God-given talent," former Queen Creek football coach Travis Schureman said.
Yet, Reynolds never worked exclusively with a quarterbacks coach, relying heavily on his physical gifts. This changed when Schureman hired former Arena Football League quarterback Scooter Molander as his team's offensive coordinator for Reynolds' junior season.
Molander helped Reynolds be consistent with his footwork, understand defensive coverages better, improve his throwing touch and increase his football IQ.
This led to a breakout junior season where Reynolds completed 61.9% of his throws for 2,238 yards, 22 touchdowns and five interceptions. He coupled this with 1,426 yards rushing and 19 scores.
"He is the ultimate competitor on the football field," Schureman said. "He will not be outworked, and he has the desire to be the best in everything he does."
MORE: What Dabo Swinney found out about 5 critical Clemson football position groups in spring
If Reynolds had his way, there would be no offseason in sports.
"When I get to the offseason, it's the worst time ever," Reynolds said on Clemson's "2 Right Turns Podcast." "I hate the offseason. Like I'd rather just be in season all the time."
This competitiveness comes from a family of athletes. Paul Reynolds was a dual-sport athlete like Tait Reynolds, playing minor league baseball in 1994-95 then playing linebacker at Arizona State from 1996-97.
His oldest daughter was a swimmer, then his second-oldest daughter was a cross-country runner. Trey Reynolds plays linebacker at Utah, and Porter Reynolds is a linebacker at UT Martin. Their youngest sibling, Emma, is committed to play softball at Oklahoma.
However, Tait Reynolds learned patience when he injured his hamstring before his senior season. His dad says he originally tweaked it playing baseball in his junior season, and he continued to play through it until injuring it again during preseason football camp while running.
Reynolds appeared in just two games in his senior year before he was shut down.
"He's definitely on the mend now. It's exciting because I think he can really start showing what he can do here pretty quick because he's been limited up to this point," Paul Reynolds said.
Swinney has never started a true freshman quarterback to begin a season, but Reynolds has a shot to be the first.
If Reynolds doesn't win the job for Week 1, Swinney has also inserted several true freshmen during the season in his Clemson tenure, including Deshaun Watson, Trevor Lawrence and Cade Klubnik.
Still, Vizzina is more experienced than Reynolds, waiting three seasons for his chance to be Clemson's starting quarterback. In his lone start against SMU in 2025, he threw for 317 yards and three touchdowns.
Whoever wins the job will have expectations to lead Clemson back to the national-championship scene after the Tigers went 7-6 record last season, the second-worst season in Swinney's full 17 seasons.
"That's why he wanted to be there to have that chance to compete on that level," Paul Reynolds said. "... Tait thrives in those situations and loves those situations."
In Clemson's spring game, Tait Reynolds was 7-of-10 passing for 74 yards, rushed for a score, but was sacked five times between the Orange and White teams.
To protect quarterbacks, plays were blown dead when a defender got near one and ruled a sack/tackle. The Orange team consisted of Clemson's first-team players, and the White team featured second- and third-team players.
With the White team, Reynolds struggled, completing 3 of 4 passes for 37 yards and rushing for minus-16 yards on five attempts in four possessions. Four of his sacks came with this unit.
But, when Reynolds switched to the Orange team, he played more comfortably. He was 4-of-6 passing for 37 yards and a rushing score in one drive.
"Everyone's seeing just the tip of the iceberg with Tait, which is pretty exciting," Schureman said.
Derrian Carter covers Clemson athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email him at [email protected] and follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @DerrianCarter00
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Why Clemson football freshman QB Tait Reynolds embraces competition
Continue reading...
Growing up the second-youngest of six siblings and youngest of three brothers in Queen Creek, Arizona, the location was often the nearby park by the Reynolds' home.
He would play with or against his brothers, Trey and Porter Reynolds, with the goal of not being overshadowed by the older duo.
"(He) saw how hard they worked, and he was right there with them doing everything he could to stand out," Paul Reynolds, Tait Reynolds' father, told The Greenville News. "He always felt like he was as good as them."
So, when Tait Reynolds, 6-foot-2 and weighs 215 pounds, enrolled at Clemson in January and was thrust into a starting quarterback competition for the 2026 season, he wasn't overwhelmed.
The three-star signee, who has expressed interest in pursuing both football and baseball, beat out redshirt freshman Chris Denson, graduate Trent Pearman and signee Brock Bradley in the spring to be the Tigers' No. 2 quarterback.
Reynolds' next challenge is overtaking redshirt junior Christopher Vizzina in preseason practice to be the team's starter under offensive coordinator Chad Morris before Clemson's season opener against LSU on Sept. 5.
"We came out of the spring, (Vizzina) one, and (Reynolds) two. It's not close," Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said March 28 after Clemson's spring game. "Those two guys separated, and that's just where we are."
How freshman Tait Reynolds developed into starting-caliber QB
Growing up, baseball was Reynolds' primary focus. He started on the varsity baseball team in high school and committed to Arizona State that same year.
However, he reopened his commitment in June 2024 to explore his football options after having a standout sophomore season as a full-time starting quarterback.
MORE: Dabo Swinney's unresolved questions after Clemson football spring practice
Reynolds completed 54.2% of his passes for 1,808 yards, 11 touchdowns and 11 interceptions, and rushed for 631 yards and 17 scores.
"He's probably the best athlete I've ever coached , just from God-given talent," former Queen Creek football coach Travis Schureman said.
Yet, Reynolds never worked exclusively with a quarterbacks coach, relying heavily on his physical gifts. This changed when Schureman hired former Arena Football League quarterback Scooter Molander as his team's offensive coordinator for Reynolds' junior season.
Molander helped Reynolds be consistent with his footwork, understand defensive coverages better, improve his throwing touch and increase his football IQ.
This led to a breakout junior season where Reynolds completed 61.9% of his throws for 2,238 yards, 22 touchdowns and five interceptions. He coupled this with 1,426 yards rushing and 19 scores.
"He is the ultimate competitor on the football field," Schureman said. "He will not be outworked, and he has the desire to be the best in everything he does."
MORE: What Dabo Swinney found out about 5 critical Clemson football position groups in spring
How Clemson freshman QB Tait Reynolds handled first major injury
If Reynolds had his way, there would be no offseason in sports.
"When I get to the offseason, it's the worst time ever," Reynolds said on Clemson's "2 Right Turns Podcast." "I hate the offseason. Like I'd rather just be in season all the time."
This competitiveness comes from a family of athletes. Paul Reynolds was a dual-sport athlete like Tait Reynolds, playing minor league baseball in 1994-95 then playing linebacker at Arizona State from 1996-97.
His oldest daughter was a swimmer, then his second-oldest daughter was a cross-country runner. Trey Reynolds plays linebacker at Utah, and Porter Reynolds is a linebacker at UT Martin. Their youngest sibling, Emma, is committed to play softball at Oklahoma.
However, Tait Reynolds learned patience when he injured his hamstring before his senior season. His dad says he originally tweaked it playing baseball in his junior season, and he continued to play through it until injuring it again during preseason football camp while running.
Reynolds appeared in just two games in his senior year before he was shut down.
"He's definitely on the mend now. It's exciting because I think he can really start showing what he can do here pretty quick because he's been limited up to this point," Paul Reynolds said.
Will freshman QB Tait Reynolds be Clemson football's starter?
Swinney has never started a true freshman quarterback to begin a season, but Reynolds has a shot to be the first.
If Reynolds doesn't win the job for Week 1, Swinney has also inserted several true freshmen during the season in his Clemson tenure, including Deshaun Watson, Trevor Lawrence and Cade Klubnik.
Still, Vizzina is more experienced than Reynolds, waiting three seasons for his chance to be Clemson's starting quarterback. In his lone start against SMU in 2025, he threw for 317 yards and three touchdowns.
Whoever wins the job will have expectations to lead Clemson back to the national-championship scene after the Tigers went 7-6 record last season, the second-worst season in Swinney's full 17 seasons.
"That's why he wanted to be there to have that chance to compete on that level," Paul Reynolds said. "... Tait thrives in those situations and loves those situations."
In Clemson's spring game, Tait Reynolds was 7-of-10 passing for 74 yards, rushed for a score, but was sacked five times between the Orange and White teams.
To protect quarterbacks, plays were blown dead when a defender got near one and ruled a sack/tackle. The Orange team consisted of Clemson's first-team players, and the White team featured second- and third-team players.
With the White team, Reynolds struggled, completing 3 of 4 passes for 37 yards and rushing for minus-16 yards on five attempts in four possessions. Four of his sacks came with this unit.
But, when Reynolds switched to the Orange team, he played more comfortably. He was 4-of-6 passing for 37 yards and a rushing score in one drive.
"Everyone's seeing just the tip of the iceberg with Tait, which is pretty exciting," Schureman said.
Derrian Carter covers Clemson athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email him at [email protected] and follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @DerrianCarter00
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Why Clemson football freshman QB Tait Reynolds embraces competition
Continue reading...
