TALLAHASSEE, FL — Tait Reynolds called game.
On a third-and-12 play with 3:17 remaining, Reynolds stepped up into the pocket on a passing play, evaded Florida State defenders to get a first down and broke a tackle past the sticks to keep on running. He ran all the way for a 79-yard touchdown with a key downfield block from wide receiver T.J. Moore helping Reynolds complete it.
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That run from Reynolds, by far his longest of the season, was the dagger. It was enough for Clemson (5-3, 3-2 ACC) to complete a 36-24 victory over the Seminoles (3-5, 1-4) on Oct. 31.
It was the longest run by a quarterback in Clemson history.
“My o-line did an amazing job,” Reynolds told ACC Network after the game. “There’s been ups and downs. We’re just happy to get a win tonight.
“I just needed to be a little more aggressive. Its started to slow down for me a little bit. Just keep getting better.”
After the TD run Reynolds got on the headset and talked to offensive coordinator Chad Morris. Reynolds was asked what he said.
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“He called me at night one time and he was going through my high school highlights and said, ‘Man why don’t you run like this.’ So I got in there and I was like, ‘Hey man that’s the run.’
Reynolds was 18 of 32 for 189 yards and two touchdowns against the Seminoles. He ran for 85 yards on 14 carries and scored a touchdown.
It took 42 days and nearly 300 passing attempts. But finally, Clemson football has thrown for more passing touchdowns.
Tight ends Christian Bentancur and Olsen Patt-Henry caught Reynolds’ touchdown throws off rollout passes in the first and second quarters, respectively. Reynolds has only thrown touchdown passes to tight ends this season, and his only other one entering Week 9 was to Bentancur against North Carolina in Week 3.
Reynolds’ touchdown pass to Bentancur was also the Tigers’ first first-quarter touchdown against a power-conference opponent in their last eight power-conference games. Coincidentally, the last time Clemson scored a first-quarter touchdown against power-conference opposition was against FSU last season.
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Clemson broke its four-game streak without a passing touchdown against the Seminoles, which was its longest streak without a touchdown pass since 2005.
Reynolds threw his first touchdown pass in over a month at the 10:13 mark of the first quarter.
Clemson had a short field to work with after a poor 19-yard punt to FSU’s 30-yard line. Two plays later, Reynolds faked a half-back toss right, rolled out to his left and found Bentancur on a short pass. Bentancur did the rest to score the 18-yard touchdown and open the scoring.
Reynolds almost threw his second touchdown pass in the second quarter to T.J. Moore. Reynolds threw a fade to the end zone on the left side for what would’ve been a 17-yard touchdown pass, but Moore didn’t extend his arms far enough and dropped the pass. The Tigers settled for a field goal.
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An interception on FSU’s next drive would give Reynolds another opportunity. Reynolds’ second touchdown pass of the game was similar to his first. He faked a handoff, sprinted left and found Patt-Henry in the flat for a 4-yard score.
Reynolds completed four other passes of more than 15 yards outside of Bentancur’s touchdown catch. Three of them — a 27-yard first-quarter catch on a deep pass to Tyler Brown, a 24-yard pass to Brown in the third quarter and 24-yard completion to Moore on Clemson’s first fourth-quarter play — went for over 20 yards.
Nick Coppola covers Clemson athletics for The Greenville News and the USA Today Network. Email him at ncoppola@usatodayco.com, follow him on X @Nick_Coppola__ and like his Facebook page at Nick Coppola, Clemson Sports.
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Tait Reynolds explains 79-yard TD run that sealed Clemson win vs Florida State
