After an 11-1 regular season that had the Texas Longhorns ranked No. 2 in the penultimate College Football Playoff rankings, Saturday’s 21-19 overtime loss in the SEC Championship game to the then-No. 5 Georgia Bulldogs at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta knocked the Horns out of the four spots reserved for conference champions and afforded a first-round bye.
During Sunday’s selection show, head coach Steve Sarkisian’s team received the No. 5 seed and a first-round matchup at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium against the No. 12 seed Clemson Tigers, the No. 16 in the rankings.