The third game of the College Football Playoff is over, with the Texas Longhorns defeating the Clemson Tigers. The game was played at Darrell K Royal Texas Memorial Stadium in Austin since the Longhorns were the higher-ranked team in the playoff bracket.
Texas joined Penn State and Notre Dame in advancing to the quarterfinals of the playoff. They will now be taking on the Arizona State Sun Devils in the next round.
The final score of the game was 38-24.
Read more: Penn State Shuts Down SMU in CFP, Will Face Boise State
Read more: Notre Dame Dominates Indiana in CFP, Will Face Georgia
Clemson wasted no time marching right down the field to open the scoring. Quarterback Cade Klubnik threw a strike to wide receiver Antonio Williams, who easily jolted into the endzone.
It was exactly the start that the Tigers needed to take the crowd out of the game early on. However, the Longhorns showed their might and came right back down the field to tie the game.
Texas took the lead on a long rushing touchdown, jumping out to a 14-7 lead.
Texas would score another touchdown to make it 21-7. On the next drive for Clemson, the Longhorns would pick off Klubnik to take control of the game.
The Longhorns entered halftime, leading 28-10. They dominated the entire first half despite going down early on in the game. But the Tigers didn’t flinch and made it a two-score game entering the fourth quarter, with Texas leading 31-17.
Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images
Clemson scored a touchdown on the next drive to cut the lead down to 31-24 with just under 12 minutes to go in the fourth quarter. But just when it looked like momentum had shifted, Texas hit the Tigers with a 77-yard burst from running back Jaydon Blue for a touchdown.
Clemson drove the ball down the field again but the Longhorns defense stepped up. They stuffed the Tigers on a massive fourth-down goal-line stand.
The Longhorns entered this game having one of the best defenses in all of college football. They dominated throughout the season and showed up when they needed most in this game.
Clemson can hang their heads high as most didn’t expect them to be in this position. They pushed the Longhorns as much as they could but Texas was too strong.
As for Texas, they will advance to face off against Arizona State in the Peach Bowl. The game will take place on Jan. 1, 2025, from Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia.
Arizona State won the Big 12 Conference as one of the biggest surprises in all of college football this season. This will be a great matchup and one that we will keep you covered on going forward.
For more college football news, head over to Newsweek Sports.
