All is right with the world. Our Clemson Tigers are back in the College Football Playoff.
All it took was one of the biggest field goals in Clemson history after surrendering a 17-point 4th quarter lead against a dangerous SMU team.
But here we are. Clemson are, again, ACC Champions and headed for a chance to play for another National Championship.
That road got a bit longer this year with the new 12-team format, but the Tigers are in the dance. And you have to be in it, to win it as the old adage states.
Here is your preview of Clemson’s first-round playoff opponent, the Texas Longhorns.
Texas Longhorns (11-2; 7-1 SEC)
Head Coach: Steve Sarkisian (4th Season at Texas)
Location: Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium at Campbell-Williams Field, Austin, TX
Time: 8PM
Wins against: Colorado State, Michigan, UTSA, Louisiana-Monroe, Mississippi State, Oklahoma, Vanderbilt, Florida, Arkansas, Kentucky
Losses against: Georgia x2
Offense
Offensive Coordinator – Kyle Flood (3rd Season at UT)
Coach Flood, after being fired by Rutgers, got his chance with longtime friend Coach Sark in Austin. Flood has a high-flying offense with an all-world quarterback talent in Quinn Ewers. He has a stable of running backs as well as a strong wide receiver room as well. Oh yeah, and a Lombardi Award winner at left tackle in Kelvin Banks, Jr.
It is widely known that Head Coach Sarkisian is the offensive play-caller for the Longhorns.
The Longhorns are averaging 445.4 total yards per game (18th), with 281.0 (13th) coming through the air and 164.4 (64th) on the ground. The Longhorns have scored 33.6 points per game (T-24th).
Here is a look at the projected starters for Texas on offense:
| Position | Name (#) | Year | 2024 Statistics |
| Quarterback | Quinn Ewers (3) | Junior | 233-352 66.2%; 2665 yds, 25 TDs, 9 Ints |
| Running Back | Quintrevion Wisner (26) | Sophomore | 176 att. 863 yds. 3 TDs; 32 catches, 229 yds, TD |
| Wide Receiver | DeAndre Moore, Jr. (0) | Sophomore | 31 catches, 387 yds, 6 TDs |
| Wide Receiver | Isiah Bond (7) *** | Junior | 33 catches, 532 yds, 5 TDs; 4 rushes, 98 yds, TD |
| Wide Receiver | Matthew Golden (2) | Junior | 47 catches, 738 yds, 8 TDs |
| Tight End | Gunnar Helm (85) | Senior | 49 catches, 611 yds, 5 TDs |
| Left Tackle | Kelvin Banks, Jr. (78) | Junior | |
| Left Guard | Hayden Conner (76) | Senior | |
| Center | Jake Majors (65) | Senior | |
| Right Guard | DJ Campbell (52) | Junior | |
| Right Tackle | Cameron Williams (56) | Junior | |
*** – Isaiah Bond is highly questionable with a high-ankle sprain
Defense
Defensive Coordinator: Pete Kwiatkowski (3rd Season)
A top 20 defense nationally, Coach Kwiatkowski has arguably the best defense that Clemson will see since 2018 Alabama. Depth and highly skilled talent at every level, including former ACC Freshman Defensive Player of the Year, Andrew Mukuba on the back end of the defense.
Texas is allowing 12.5 points per game to their opponents (2nd). They allow a total of 249.5 yards per game (3rd), 106.4 on the ground (13th) and 143.1 (1st).
Here is a look at the projected starters along with their statistics for the Texas defense:
| Position | Name (#) | Year | 2024 Statistics |
| JACK | Barryn Sorrell (88) | Senior | 35 tackles, 9 TFLs, 4.5 Sacks |
| Defensive Tackle | Alfred Collins (95) | Senior | 43 tackles, 5 TFLs, Sack, FF |
| Nose Tackle | Bill Norton (15) | Senior | 11 tackles |
| Defensive Tackle | Vernon Broughton (45) | Senior | 33 tackles, 3 TFLs, 3 Sacks, FF, 3 FRs |
| Outside Linebacker/Defensive End | Trey Moore (8) | Junior | 27 tackles, 7 TFLs, 3.5 Sacks, 2 FF, |
| Middle Linebacker | Anthony Hill, Jr. (0) | Sophomore | 90 tackles, 16 TFLs, 7.5 Sacks, Int, 4 FF, FR |
| Weakside Linebacker | David Gbenda (33) | Senior | 55 tackles, 5 TFLs, Sack, FF |
| Cornerback | Jahdae Barron (7) | Senior | 47 tackles, 2 TFLs, Sack, 5 Ints, FR |
| Strong Safety | Andrew Mukuba (4) | Senior | 52 tackles, 4 TFLs, 4 Ints, FF |
| Free Safety | Michael Taaffe (16) | Junior | 61 tackles, 5.5 TFLs, 2 Sacks, 2 Ints, FF, FR |
| Cornerback | Malik Muhammad (5) | Sophomore | 26 tackles, TFL |
The Longhorns are a +6 in turnover margin on the season and has 28 takeaways with 19 interceptions and 9 fumble recoveries.
They have 22 turnovers on offense, 11 fumbles and 11 interceptions thrown on the season.
Special Teams
Here is a look at the projected starters on Special Teams for Texas: .
| Position | Name (#) | Year | 2024 Statistics |
| Kicker | Bert Auburn (45) | Senior | 14-21; long of 49 yds |
| Punter | Michael Kern (39) | Freshman | 31 punts, 40.5 yd avg. long of 52 yds |
| Punt Returner | Silas Bolden (11) | Senior | 25 returns, 8.8 yd avg. Long of 55 yds |
| Kick Returner | Matthew Golden (2) | Junior | 12 returns, 20.7 yd avg. Long of 25 yds |
Summary
You have to be in it to win it, and the Tigers are in it. They earned the 12th seed in a 12 team field. Texas, ranked in the top 5 all season, has only lost to Georgia (twice) this season. This is a very good Texas team with talent up and down the roster. Isaiah Bond may be hurt, but they have a full stable of quality pass catchers on the team.
As stated earlier, Texas is one of, if not the best defense in the country this season. Statistically, they’re top 2. This is a highly talented team, especially at the lines of scrimmage and in the back end.
For some reason, the national media is giving the Tigers a chance, even as Vegas has them as a 12-point underdog. Dabo Swinney loves playing that underdog role. The players have said all of the right things this week in the media, and there is real excitement coming out of the upstate. It’s almost time to stop all the talking and spot the dang ball!
Go Tigers! Beat the Longhorns!
