Dabo Swinney’s Clemson Tigers have not seen the College Football Playoffs in nearly four years, with their last appearance being a 49-28 loss to Ohio State in the 2021 Sugar Bowl.
That same year, quarterback Cade Klubnik led his team, the Westlake Chaparrals, to their third consecutive state championship. His opponent? Quinn Ewers and the Carroll Senior High Dragons.
Today, Swinney and Klubnik are going toe-to-toe with Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian and Ewers for round one of the playoffs. Though Klubnik and Ewers are familiar with each other’s playing styles, this game marks the first meeting between the Tigers and Longhorns in program history.
“Quinn and I go way back. We’ve definitely got a great relationship,” Klubnik said earlier this week. “And I got to know Arch (Manning) a lot this summer, great guy and love both those two, they’re just great guys that love ball and they’re going to have great careers and I’m excited to see them on Saturday, for sure.”
The Tigers (10-3, 7-1 ACC) received the lowest seed in the College Football Playoff after selections following conference championships, leaving them with a matchup with the No. 5-seeded Texas Longhorns in the first round of the postseason. In their first season in the SEC, the Longhorns made it to the SEC Championship game, only to fall to the Georgia Bulldogs in overtime in Atlanta.
The goals of the Tigers this season were simple: an ACC championship win, a College Football Playoff appearance and a national championship. With a game-winning 56-yard field goal from Nolan Hauser two weeks ago, Clemson’s goals were back on track.
While spearheaded by an offensive mind in Sarkisian, Texas (11-2, 7-1 SEC) has been known for its defensive prowess this season. The team is first in total pass defense per game in the country, only allowing 143.1 yards per game this season. While also being ranked second in the country in total defensive yards allowed (249.8) and points against per game (12.5), it’s been a struggle for opposing defenses to put points on the board against the Longhorns.
A key piece of their secondary has been senior Andrew Mukuba, who spent three years with the Tigers before announcing his transfer to the Longhorns. He has recorded four interceptions and 52 tackles this season, making him a verifiable threat to his former teammates.
“They definitely try to keep everything in front of them,” Klubnik said about the Texas scheme. “They’ve got a lot of speed on the back end, and that’s kind of what they do. Safeties will get 15 to 20 yards back at times, corners will definitely play some catch and get out of there, so they’re trying to limit big plays, keep everything in front of them and make tackles, because that’s what they’re good at.”
Sarkisian uses a tandem of quarterbacks to find success on his offense. Third-year starter Quinn Ewers makes most of the plays for the Longhorns, but Sarkisian is prone to putting in wild card Arch Manning to switch up the tempo. Manning has 13 total touchdowns in limited play this season, with four of those being on the ground to help with the Longhorn rushing attack.
Statistically speaking, Klubnik has had the stronger season between the two Texas natives. He has thrown for 3,303 yards in the air, 33 touchdowns — seven of which he ran in himself — and five interceptions. Ewers has thrown for 2,665 yards, 25 touchdowns and nine interceptions
Though Klubnik’s arm is a powerful force to be reckoned with, the Tigers will have to rely on their rushing attack to be productive this afternoon. In Texas’s only two losses of the season – both of which came at the hands of Georgia — the only opposing scores for the Bulldogs were five rushing touchdowns.
Clemson’s rushing corp is a potential source of concern thanks to injuries. RB1 Phil Mafah has been battered and bruised throughout the course of the season, and second-stringer Jay Haynes is out for the season after tearing his ACL in the ACC Championship two weeks ago. Wide receiver Adam Randall may be a potential bright spot in the position, however, after bullying his way through the SMU special teams for a 41-yard kick return which set Hauser up for the game-winning kick.
“Like I said, nobody’s 100%,” Swinney said. “I doubt they’ve got very few players that are 100% and we don’t either. But certainly, rest for Mafah is not a bad thing, but he’s got to have postseason surgery regardless. But, he’s going to give everything he’s got and I thought he was better in the last game, but we have got to use our depth there, for sure.”
While the Clemson receiving attack has been the Tigers’ most lethal part of their offense, Swinney will need great production as a group if the team will want to leave Austin, Texas, with a win. The trio of redshirt sophomore Antonio Williams and true freshmen Bryant Wesco Jr. and T.J. Moore have all recorded more than 500 receiving yards this season. It’s the first time in program history that two freshmen have recorded more than 500 yards in a season, hinting at the potential return of WRU.
Kickoff is set for 4 p.m. The game will be broadcast on TNT, with streaming available on Max.
