Clemson Holds Off Florida State 36-24 as Tait Reynolds Breaks 79-Yard Touchdown Run

For three quarters, Clemson played the kind of game that wins in November: no turnovers, five field goals and a defense that kept taking the ball away. Then Florida State made it interesting.

The Clemson Tigers held off the Florida State Seminoles 36-24 on Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026, at Doak Campbell Stadium, surviving a late rally after building a 29-10 lead early in the fourth quarter. Nolan Hauser went 5 for 5 on field goals, Tait Reynolds threw two touchdown passes without an interception, and Clemson forced four turnovers. When Florida State cut a 19-point lead to five, Reynolds answered with a 79-yard touchdown run that put the game away.

Two Programs Looking for a Pulse

Neither side walked into Doak Campbell Stadium feeling great about itself. Clemson was 4-3 and 2-2 in the ACC after a 20-16 home loss to Virginia Tech that ended on a fourth-down touchdown in Death Valley. Florida State was 3-4 and 1-3 in league play, riding a two-game losing streak, and still somehow a six-point favorite at home. Clemson had won the 2025 meeting 24-10.

Reynolds Sets the Tone

Tait Reynolds, who came in with just one touchdown pass on the season, doubled that total before the first quarter was half over. The Clemson quarterback hit Christian Bentancur for an 18-yard score at 10:13 of the opening period, and the Tigers looked crisp in a way they had not for most of October.

Florida State answered quickly. Ashton Daniels found Micahi Danzy for a 46-yard touchdown at 7:08 to tie it at 7, the kind of explosive strike the Seminoles' offense has leaned on all year. That was close to the last thing that went right for Florida State in the half.

Nolan Hauser put Clemson back in front with a 35-yard field goal at 2:01 of the first quarter. Gabe Panikowski matched it from 35 yards early in the second to tie it at 10, but Clemson's defense took over from there. Daniels threw two first-half interceptions, the Seminoles went 0 for 5 on third down, and Hauser turned another stalled drive into a 35-yard field goal for a 13-10 lead with 7:21 left in the half.

The Tigers then finished the half the way good teams do. Reynolds capped a drive with a 4-yard touchdown pass to Olsen Patt-Henry with 1:38 left, and after Florida State went nowhere, Hauser drilled a 50-yarder with two seconds on the clock. That 10-point flurry turned a field-goal game into a 23-10 halftime lead.

At the break, Reynolds was 12 of 19 for 118 yards and two touchdowns. Daniels was 6 of 13 for 98 yards with a touchdown and two picks, and Clemson had outgained Florida State 183 to 133.

The Turning Point: A Fourth-Down Fumble

Florida State's best chance to make this a game came midway through the third quarter. Trailing 26-10 after Hauser's 46-yard field goal at 8:00, the Seminoles finally found some rhythm. Daniels hit Jayvan Boggs for 40 yards to get into Clemson territory, and the drive reached the Clemson 26 facing fourth-and-3.

Mike Norvell kept the offense on the field, and Clemson seized control right there. Darien Mayo forced Daniels to fumble, and Jahiem Lawson recovered for Clemson at its own 16 with 4:15 left in the third quarter. An eight-play, 75-yard drive that should have cut the deficit to nine ended with nothing.

Clemson went backward on a three-and-out after the gift, but Florida State's next drive also stalled, and a 30-yard punt early in the fourth quarter handed the ball back to the Tigers.

A Late Scare, Then a Knockout

Clemson took the ball after that punt and added to the lead the only way it seemed able to all night. Reynolds hit T.J. Moore for 24 yards to keep a nine-play, 36-yard drive moving, and Hauser came on for a 49-yard field goal, making it five for five on the night and 29-10 with 11:04 left.

Then Florida State woke up. Daniels hit Danzy for 52 yards on the first big play of a five-play, 75-yard drive, and Daniels finished it on the ground with a 13-yard touchdown run at 8:52. A two-point pass to tight end Desirrio Riles made it 29-18.

Clemson's next drive stalled at its own 34 and ended in a punt, and Florida State struck again. On a no-huddle snap from the Clemson 41, Daniels threw deep down the left side to freshman Jasen Lopez for a 41-yard touchdown with 5:30 left, and suddenly a 19-point Clemson lead was down to five at 29-24.

Then Reynolds made the play of the night. Facing third-and-12 at the Clemson 21 with the lead down to five, the Clemson quarterback took a no-huddle shotgun snap, pulled it down and ran right, and nobody caught up. The 79-yard touchdown run with 3:17 left, followed by Hauser's extra point, made it 36-24 and took the air out of Doak Campbell Stadium.

Florida State still had one more push in it. Daniels moved the Seminoles from deep in their own territory into the red zone, but on third-and-6 from the Clemson 9, Washington II picked off Daniels in the end zone with 1:06 left, and Clemson ran out the clock.

Reynolds Delivers, Hauser Perfect

Reynolds was not perfect, but Clemson got exactly what it needed from its quarterback. Reynolds finished 18 of 32 for 189 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions, and for most of the night the quarterback run game was not a factor, with 13 carries for 6 yards through the first 56 minutes. Then came the 79-yard run, which left Reynolds with 14 carries for 85 yards and gave Clemson its knockout punch. Against a Florida State team that needed short fields and big plays, an offense that never turned the ball over was enough.

Tyler Brown led Clemson with five catches for 74 yards, T.J. Moore added three for 36, and Olsen Patt-Henry and Christian Bentancur each caught a touchdown. Jarvis Green (37 yards on nine carries) and Gideon Davidson (36 yards on 12 carries) shared the load in a ground game that rarely got going outside of Reynolds.

The star was Hauser, who went 5 for 5 on field goals, from 35, 35, 50, 46 and 49 yards, and even boomed a 53-yard punt from deep in Clemson territory in the third quarter. Counting three extra points, Hauser alone accounted for 18 of Clemson's 36 points.

A Defense That Took It Away

Clemson's defense gave up chunk plays, but it kept taking the ball. Jerome Carter III picked off Daniels and returned it 26 yards, Elliot Washington II added two interceptions, including the one in the end zone that ended Florida State's last drive, and Mayo's forced fumble on fourth down killed Florida State's best drive of the night. Will Heldt led the Tigers with seven tackles, a sack and 2.5 tackles for loss, and Sammy Brown and Carter each added a sack.

Daniels made plays, finishing 21 of 33 for 350 yards and two touchdowns with a rushing score, and Micahi Danzy caught four passes for 108 yards. But Daniels also threw three interceptions and lost the fumble, and Florida State went 1 of 10 on third down.

By the Numbers

15: Points Hauser scored on field goals alone, more than Clemson's final margin of 12.

4 to 0: The turnover margin. Clemson did not give the ball away once.

1 of 10: Florida State on third down.

34:03: Clemson's time of possession, more than eight minutes better than Florida State.

What It Means

For Clemson, the win stops the bleeding from the Virginia Tech loss and moves the Tigers to 5-3 overall and 3-2 in the ACC. The offense is still a work in progress, but a team that wins the turnover battle this decisively can stay in any game. Clemson visits Syracuse on Nov. 7.

For Florida State, it is a third straight loss, and the Seminoles fall to 3-5 and 1-4 in ACC play. The pressure on Mike Norvell, who was already on the hot seat entering the night, is only going to grow. Florida State visits Boston College at noon on Nov. 7.

The Take

This was not a pretty Clemson win, and it does not have to be. A week earlier, the Tigers let a close game slip away at home against Virginia Tech. This time they closed it out with a perfect kicker and a defense that came up with the ball when Florida State threatened. Florida State, meanwhile, looked like a team that can move the ball between the 20s and not much else, and with three straight losses and November arriving, the questions in Tallahassee are only getting louder.

Sources: ESPN box score (opens in a new tab), ESPN play-by-play, Florida State Athletics. More college football coverage on Undrafted.

Photos: Florida State Athletics.