Everything is bigger in Texas.
The 5th seeded Texas Longhorns depended on a nonstop ground and pound running attack to outlast a furious second-half comeback by the 12th seeded Clemson Tigers, earning a 38-24 victory to advance to the quarterfinal round of the College Football Playoff.
Running back Jaydon Blue had the biggest run in the biggest game of the season so far for Texas. He was not 100% and had to gut his way through a lingering ankle injury and fumble problems to do it.
Blue ran for 146 yards, dashing through a big crease for 77 yards for a touchdown in the fourth quarter to help the Longhorns defeat Clemson on Saturday night in the first round of the 12-team expanded College Football Playoff.
Blue was initially thrust into the bell cow role when injuries sustained in training camp sidelined C.J. Baxter and Christian Clark for the season. Blue sat out a game due to the ankle injury, then saw his work load reduced dramatically over several games because of fumble problems.
Texas (12-2) on the season, the No. 5 seed, advanced to the January 1, New Years Day Peach Bowl to play Big 12 champion and No. 4 seed Arizona State Sun Devils.
“You can’t win (the championship) if you don’t win the first one,” Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said. “We did that.”
Blue’s confidence was already at a all-time high after finding paydirt with a 38-yard touchdown earlier in the game. The latter one came after the Tigers had scratched and clawed from down three touchdowns, 31-10, to within seven, 31-24, on quarterback Cade Klubnik’s third touchdown pass.
Embed from Getty ImagesBlue scored on a 38-yard cut-and-dash burst in the second quarter. On the second touchdown, he dove into the line, shook a would-be tackler, and then used his wheels to outrace three more to the end zone with just 11 minutes left. He clutched the ball tightly to his chest when a defender attempted to rip it away.
“It was a sigh of relief after everything I’ve been going through,” Blue said. “I stayed patient, I saw a crease and it was everything (open) from there.”
Sarkisian said Blue never lost the trust of the team.
“Our staff, his teammates, believed in him,” Sarkisian said. “I just gave him a big hug and told him how proud I was.”
Quintrevion Wisner added 110 yards rushing and two first-half scores for the Longhorns. Quinn Ewers, who has been struggling and dealing with injuries, was the ultimate game manager, passing for 202 yards and a touchdown.
Klubnik, who grew up in Austin, passed for 336 yards and rallied the Tigers (10-4) in the second half against a Texas defense that had surrendered just four passing touchdowns all season.
“We just got ourselves in too big a hole in the first half. Everything was uphill.” Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said. “We just put it in Cade’s hands and let it rip.”
The second-place finishers in the Southeastern Conference, Texas is the only one of last season’s four playoff teams to make the new 12-team field. Clemson won the ACC championship to make the playoff against SMU. The Tigers were the No. 12 seed in their first appearance since 2020 and seventh overall.
“It’s not easy to get on this stage (again), and they earned it,” Sarkisian said. “It think college football got this one right. This idea of a home playoff game with a 12-team format was pretty special.”
Clemson will do everything they can to defend their ACC title in 2025 and earn their eighth playoff berth.
Texas moves on to face Arizona State in a CFP quarterfinal. The Longhorns left the Big 12 before Arizona State joined that league this season.
