Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney says the Tigers have clarity on the quarterback battle coming out of spring practice.

Heading into the summer, redshirt junior Christopher Vizzina remains Clemson’s QB1, while true freshman Tait Reynolds has emerged as the No. 2 quarterback. Swinney says those two guys have clearly separated themselves in the QB race to this point.

“We came out of the spring, CV one and Tait is two [on the depth chart]. It’s not close. Those two guys separated, and that’s where we are. That’s just where we are,” Swinney said following Saturday’s Orange & White Spring Game at Memorial Stadium.

“So, we’re coming out of spring with some clarity,” Swinney added. “I think we needed that. The team needed that, the players needed that, and I think they all knew that. So, coming out of it now with two clear guys, we can go into the summer.”

Vizzina played well in the glorified scrimmage Saturday, completing 10 of 18 passes for 95 yards and a touchdown.

Swinney said in late January that Vizzina – who served as Cade Klubnik’s backup for multiple years – entered spring practice in the “pole position” to take over as the Tigers’ starter in 2026.

Now, with spring ball in the books, Vizzina is still in the “pole position” according to Swinney.

“CV had a good day today,” Swinney said. “And again, he’s had freshmen out there with him all spring, but again, they got better. And he had good spring. He’s still got work to do – he’s got a long way to go.

“This is going to be a very competitive summer, a very competitive fall camp. He was the lead horse coming in, and he’s still got the pole position.”

As for Reynolds, he was the No. 2 quarterback for the spring game. He played for both teams and was the first quarterback out for the White team. Between the two sides, the Queen Creek, Arizona native was 7-for-10 for 74 yards. He also ran for a touchdown.

Reynolds led the White team on a nine-play, 59-yard field goal drive in the first quarter, the only successful offensive drive of the game for the White. He also led the Orange on a seven-play, 50-yard drive, which he capped by calling his own number for a 1-yard touchdown run.

“Tait, we made that decision after the [spring] break. He’s just clearly No. 2 and has separated,” Swinney said of Reynolds. “So, I’ve been really proud of him. He’s done a lot of work. He’s got elite arm talent. Big, strong… There’s some operational things he’s got to keep getting better at. But he just got better and better and better.”

Reynolds was the No. 3 prospect in the state of Arizona and the 11th-best dual-threat quarterback nationally in the 2026 recruiting class, according to ESPN.

A hamstring injury basically robbed Reynolds of his entire senior season at Queen Creek (Ariz.) High School, but before that, he completed 61.9 percent of his passes for 2,238 yards with 22 touchdowns and only five interceptions as a junior in 2024. He also rushed 137 times for 1,426 yards and 19 touchdowns that year en route to being named by the Arizona Cardinals as the state’s player of the year.

Reynolds signed with Clemson this past December and enrolled in January.

Before enrolling at Clemson in January 2023, Vizzina was ranked among the nation’s top prospects in the 2023 recruiting class. The high four-star had more than 30 offers, including from some of the best football programs in the country.

Heading into 2026 after his first three years at Clemson from 2023-25, Vizzina has completed 61 percent of his passes for 596 yards and four touchdowns with one interception in 238 career offensive snaps across 14 games, while also rushing for 109 yards and a touchdown on 38 carries.

Last season, Vizzina appeared in five games, including one start, and altogether completed 63.4 percent of his passes for 406 yards and four touchdowns with one interception, while also rushing for 41 yards on 25 carries.

He made his first career start vs. SMU at Memorial Stadium on Oct. 18, as Klubnik missed the contest after suffering a sprained ankle in the Tigers’ game at Boston College one week earlier. In the 35-24 loss to SMU, Vizzina completed 29-of-42 passes for 317 yards with three touchdowns and a pass efficiency rating of 156.0. He did not throw an interception, though he fumbled twice and lost one of them.

Clemson will begin fall camp in late July or early August. The season begins on Sept. 5 at LSU.