TALLAHASSEE — Tait Reynolds threw a pair of touchdown passes, his first in more than a month, as Clemson jumped out early and held off a late rally, defeating Florida State 36-24 on Saturday night.

The freshman quarterback had not thrown a touchdown pass in four games, but he connected with Christian Bentancur and Olsen Patt-Henry on first-half touchdown passes as Clemson led 23-10 after 30 minutes.

Reynolds sealed the win with a weaving 79-yard touchdown run on third and 12 with 3:17 left for Clemson (5-3, 3-2 Atlantic Coast Conference). He completed 18 of 32 passes for 189 yards.

Nolan Hauser made five field-goal attempts — from 50, 49, 46, 35 and 35 — as Clemson won its third straight game in the series with Florida State. Hauser has made 23 of 24 field-goal attempts in 2026.

Florida State quarterback Ashton Daniels threw three interceptions and also fumbled. He completed 21 of 33 passes for 350 yards, a 46-yard touchdown pass to Micahi Danzy, a 41-yard TD pass to Jasen Lopez and a 13-yard touchdown run but Florida State (3-5, 1-4) lost its third straight game.

Clemson starting left guard Elyjah Thurmon lay on the grass for about 10 minutes in the second quarter before being strapped to a backboard. He gave a thumbs-up while being driven off the field on a cart.

The takeaway

Clemson scored on eight of 13 drives before taking the victory formation in the final minute in its most efficient performance against a Power 4 opponent.

Florida State played its first game without leading rusher Ousmane Kromah. The Seminoles managed just 65 yards rushing on 29 carries.

By BOB FERRANTE Associated Press

• • •

Sign up for our Sports Today newsletter to get daily updates on the Bucs, Rays, Lightning and college football across Florida.

Every weekday, tune into our Sports Day Tampa Bay podcast to hear reporter Rick Stroud break down the biggest stories in Tampa Bay sports.

Never miss out on the latest with your favorite Tampa Bay sports teams. Follow our coverage on X and Facebook.