CLEMSON — Exiting spring practice, Clemson football coach Dabo Swinney said the Tigers have a clear pecking order at quarterback.
“We came out of the spring, (Christopher Vizzina) one, and (freshman Tait Reynolds) two. It’s not close,” Swinney said March 28 after Clemson’s spring game. “Those two guys separated, and that’s just where we are.”
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Swinney added he believes Reynolds, a three-star signee, can challenge for the starting job over Vizzina, who entered spring practice in the “pole position” to be Clemson‘s starter after waiting for three seasons.
“Ain’t nobody got lifetime contracts around here,” Swinney said. “… CV didn’t do anything to back up, but Tait has done everything to move forward.”
Swinney said Reynolds was battling for No. 2 but “cleared that” and was elevated as the clear No. 2 in Clemson’s quarterback depth chart after the team’s scrimmage on March 11.
In Clemson’s spring game, Reynolds was 7-of-10 for 74 yards, rushed for a score and was sacked five times between the Orange and White teams.
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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.
Swinney was vocal about Reynolds’ miscues, calling out on the stadium’s microphone that the freshman should have thrown the ball quicker on a play and saying he should have kept the ball on a read-option play in the red zone.
MORE: 5 intriguing players who stood out for Dabo Swinney at Clemson football spring game
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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.
“He’s got an elite arm talent and (is) big, strong,” Swinney said. “… There’s some operational things he’s got to be better at, but he just got better and better and better.”
Like Swinney said, Vizzina has not lost the No. 1 job. The junior was 10-of-18 passing for 95 yards and a touchdown and rushed for 14 yards on two attempts over three drives. It took the offense until the third drive to score, though.
Vizzina is also the most experienced quarterback on Clemson’s roster, playing in 14 games and making one start, which came in 2025 against SMU with Cade Klubnik out.
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All the other quarterbacks: Reynolds, Chris Denson, Brock Bradley and Trent Pearman, have all combined for eight appearances and no starts.
Still, Reynolds’s growth has helped simplify Clemson’s quarterback competition. Swinney and his staff must figure out who will be the team’s starter before facing LSU and new coach Lane Kiffin in its season opener on Sept. 5 at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
“We’re coming out of spring with some clarity, and I think we needed that, the team needed that, the players needed that and I think they all knew that,” Swinney said. “Coming out of it, now, with two clear guys, and we can go into the summer.”
What Dabo Swinney said about QB Chris Denson
Denson, a former three-star signee who flipped his commitment from Coastal Carolina, entered the spring as the likeliest challenger to Vizzina to be Clemson’s starter in 2026.
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He appeared in two games in his freshman season in 2025. He had his best game against Furman, entering in the second half to go 4-for-4 for 22 yards and a touchdown, and he rushed for 108 yards and a score.
However, he has fallen down the depth chart, not playing in the spring game until the third quarter, being the fifth quarterback to play and only receiving two drives.
“Denson is physically as gifted as anybody we got but just not where he needs to be from a passing-game standpoint to compete like he needs to,” Swinney said. “He’s a guy that has a decision to make. If he stays at quarterback, he will play for us. He’ll have a role. He’s too talented.”
Swinney said it would be Denson’s decision to change his position.
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“He’ll keep getting better, but we play in five months, and we got to keep moving, and we got to put the team in position to go win,” Swinney said.
Derrian Carter covers Clemson athletics for The Greenville News and the USA TODAY Network. Email him at DCarter@usatodayco.com and follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @DerrianCarter00
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Dabo Swinney gives latest update on Clemson football QB competition
