Clemson Tigers quarterback Tait Reynolds could take the college football world by storm against Miami.
Very few people are actually giving the Clemson Tigers a chance to upset the Miami Hurricanes on Saturday.
Miami is favored by 16.5 points in spite of Clemson being the home team, and the one other time the Tigers played a ranked opponent this season, they lost by 41 points.
However, I genuinely feel that Clemson is a different squad than the one we saw in Week 1 against LSU, and I believe that will manifest on to the field against the Hurricanes.
But while the Tigers' defense is the primary reason why I think Clemson will at least remain in the game, quarterback Tait Reynolds will be the reason for an upset win.
Miami owns the top-ranked offense in the country. There is only so long the Tigers will be able to hold off Darian Mensah, Malachi Toney and that explosive unit. Clemson's offense will have to be better than it was at California last Friday, and it may very well have to put forth its best performance of the year.
The Tigers did manage to post 28 points against North Carolina in Week 3, but even still they totaled just 349 yards of total offense. That isn't horrendous, but it isn't great, especially when you consider Miami is averaging nearly 600 yards per game.
That's where Reynolds comes into play.
Reynolds has the chance to take the college football world by storm with a strong showing versus the No. 4-ranked Hurricanes on Saturday evening, and that doesn't necessarily mean he has to outgun Mensah. Because, let's be honest: that probably won't happen.
The true freshman signal-caller just needs to play mistake-free football, which is something he hasn't done in any of his outings thus far. Turnovers won't cut it against Miami. You can't hand that offense extra points.
Reynolds needs to be judicious with the football, take his time and make the right plays. He has fine weapons at his disposal in wide receivers T.J. Moore and Bryant Wesco, not to mention emerging running back Gideon Davidson.
The pieces are there. Reynolds just needs to execute.
That will be challenging against Miami, which also boasts the nation's second-ranked defense, but playing a smart game is doable.
And if Reynolds is able to guide Clemson to an upset win over The U here in Week 5, it will do wonders for his standing both now and moving forward.
The Tigers have fallen almost completely off the map as a football program. Saturday night gives them the opportunity to change that, and Reynolds will be leading the charge.
