For the second straight year, the No. 3 Texas Longhorns are in the College Football Playoff, this time at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium with a first-round matchup against the No. 16 Clemson Tigers in the new 12-team format.
Head coach Steve Sarkisian’s team is a 13.5-point favorite, but Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnik is the best passer Texas has faced this season and the Tigers defense is opportunistic, so the Longhorns will have to avoid the turnovers, penalties, and other mistakes that defined the two losses to the Bulldogs and often threatened to derail the season.