Clemson freshman QB pokes fun at Florida State’s empty stadium before Syracuse game

Noise in the Clemson Tigers' media center forced quarterback Tait Reynolds to wait during his press conference on Wednesday, Nick Kosko noted for On3, and the interruption sent the freshman's mind back to Saturday's trip to Tallahassee.

"I think Florida State was playing some crowd noise. It got louder throughout the game. There was nobody there. It got loud. I was like, 'What the heck?'" Reynolds said with a smile.

Reynolds was joking, and the joke landed because of how the last week has gone for the Florida State Seminoles.

Before Clemson's 36-24 win on Oct. 31, a plane circled Doak Campbell Stadium towing a banner that called for the firing of head coach Mike Norvell and the removal of board chairman Peter Collins, with Norvell's name misspelled. Dabo Swinney brought it up afterward, on behalf of the opposing coach.

"It was embarrassing what I saw above the stadium. Whoever did that, man, you ought to be ashamed of yourself. And they didn't even spell his name right," Swinney said.

Florida State played the fourth quarter in front of a mostly empty stadium and fired Norvell the next day, ending a seven-year run at 41-39. Rick Stockstill is now the interim coach of a 3-5 team.

Why did Doak Campbell Stadium get loud with so few fans left?

A less scandalous explanation than a sound system sits in the box score: Florida State trailed 29-10 with under nine minutes to play, then scored 14 straight points to make it 29-24. Whoever had stayed finally had something to yell about. Reynolds ended it on third-and-12 with 3:17 left, running 79 yards for a touchdown, the longest run ever by a Clemson quarterback.

Clemson entered the game with two touchdown passes all season, the fewest in FBS, and had gone four games without one, its longest drought since 2005. Reynolds threw two against Florida State, finishing 18 of 32 for 189 yards, and added 85 rushing yards on 14 carries. That was quite a night for a quarterback who in September became the earliest freshman to start for Clemson in more than 50 years , and it helps explain the mood on Wednesday.

The win moved Clemson to 5-3 and 3-2 in the ACC, one victory from bowl eligibility. The next stop is the indoor JMA Wireless Dome, where the Tigers face the Syracuse Orange at noon ET on Saturday on ESPN2.