Exit in Texas: Clemson season ends in College Football Playoff loss to Longhorns

Clemson football was driving and needed one yard.

Then Cade Klubnik got stuffed.

Then Keith Adams Jr. got stuffed.

Then it was over.

A late surge was too little and too late for the Tigers, who fell 38-24 to Texas in a first-round College Football Playoff game on Saturday afternoon in Austin.

The No. 12 Tigers trailed the No. 5 Longhorns by as many as 21 points (31-10) at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium but mounted an impressive comeback.

Clemson scored 14 unanswered points to get it to 31-24 before surrendering a long rushing touchdown in the fourth quarter. Still, the Tigers found themselves at Texas’ 1-yard line with eight minutes to go, trailing 38-24, needing a touchdown.

The drive had gone so well … until Klubnik was stuffed on a quarterback keeper for no gain on third-and-1. With its season on the line, the Tigers chose a predictable play in the book: A run up the middle. Backup RB Adams, in for injured starter Phil Mafah, got nothing on fourth down and Clemson’s momentum disappeared.

The Tigers got a wild break on the ensuing possession when Texas backup QB Arch Manning fumbled the snap on fourth-and-1 and had to fall on it, giving Clemson possession down 14 points with 1:43 remaining and no timeouts.

But after a few chunk plays, Clemson turned it over on downs at Texas’ 26.

UT (12-2) ran out the clock from there and advanced to a CFP quarterfinal game against No. 4 Arizona State, which will be held Jan. 1 at the Peach Bowl in Atlanta.

Clemson’s season ends at 10-4.

Klubnik (336 passing yards, three touchdowns, one interception) was excellent in his return to the hometown and had the most yards any QB has had this year against Texas’ No. 1 passing defense. Clemson’s 412 total yards were also the most against the Longhorns this year (and their opponent list is no joke).

Clemson’s defense had its moments, with two turnovers forced. But the Tigers allowed a season-worst 38 points, 494 total yards and 292 rushing yards to the Longhorns, and that was too much to overcome.

“We just got ourselves in a really big hole in the first half, giving up 28 points,” coach Dabo Swinney said postgame. “We battled back. Those kids could’ve quit. That’s a tough situation, where everything’s kind of uphill on you. But man, I’m just proud of the fight. I’m proud of the heart that you saw from our group.”

“We put ourselves in position to win the game.”

Game recap

The Tigers’ first CFP game in four years started with a bang.

The Tigers got the ball first on offense and marched 12 plays and 75 yards down the field for an opening-drive touchdown, chewing up nearly seven minutes.

When wide receiver Antonio Williams sprinted in untouched from 22 yards for a score, the Clemson sideline was ecstatic and the crowd at DKR was stunned as the Tigers (who closed as a 13.5-point betting underdog) went up 7-0.

There wasn’t much celebrating after that.

The Texas offense made quick work of Clemson for an opening-drive score of its own from running back Quintrevion Wisner and grounded and pounded its way to three more touchdowns — two rushing, one passing — before halftime.

Texas led 28-10 at the break. The Longhorns racked up 289 total yards, 16 first downs and eight yards per play against a Clemson defense that had two big stops — a fourth-down stuff in the red zone and an interception — but not much else.

“They’re really good,” Swinney said. “They can make you pay for these things. That’s a good football team. That’s really it. We didn’t have that many busts or things like that. … It just came down to fundamentals.”

It’s not like the Tigers’ offense gave them much help, scoring on just two of seven first-half possessions.

After the Tigers stalled in the red zone, kicker Nolan Hauser’s short field goal cut Clemson’s deficit from 21-7 to 21-10 with 1:33 remaining. For the first time since early in the first quarter, the Tigers had some life on the road.

Then, Clemson booted the ensuing kickoff out of bounds. It was a backbreaking error, considering Texas was getting the ball to start the third quarter. If there was any spot in the game to not give up points, it was then.

Quarterback Quinn Ewers made the Tigers pay, executing a quick drive and finding tight end Gunnar Helm wide open down the seam for a 19-yard touchdown and 28-10 Texas lead.

Kickoff specialist Robert Gunn III setting Texas up at its own 35 on that possession was one of many small errors or missed plays by Clemson in the first half.

Other honorable mentions:

• Swinney declining to go for a fourth-and-1 from his own 39 on Clemson’s second possession in the first quarter. The Tigers kicked it away in a 7-7 game, punter Aidan Swanson booted it just 31 yards and Texas immediately scored.

• Defensive tackle Tré Williams getting called for an illegal blindside block after an interception. His penalty nullified a return touchdown by safety R.J. Mickens that would’ve brought Clemson within 21-14. Instead, the Tigers kicked a field goal.

• Cornerback Avieon Terrell failing to corral a catchable interception on Texas’ last drive. Had he picked off Ewers, Clemson would’ve have the ball at midfield, with a timeout, trailing 21-10 with about a minute to go. Instead, Texas scored again.

UT came out of the break and chewed up seven minutes of clock before settling for a short field goal to go up three possessions in the third quarter (31-10).

Comeback brews

But Clemson’s defense forced its first punt of the game later in the period, and the offense, for once, responded with some complementary football, as Klubnik found reserve running back Jarvis Green for a 25-yard TD out of the backfield (31-17).

Then the Tigers got the break they needed when, late in the third quarter, Texas went for a fourth- and-2 in plus territory and receiver Matthew Golden was wide open but dropped a pass in the flat.

Clemson took full advantage of that gaffe, ripping off a gutsy 10-play, 64-yard drive to get within a touchdown. Facing fourth-and-6 at Texas’ 7-yard line, Klubnik scrambled and hit receiver T.J. Moore, who was unguarded, for a touchdown.

Just like that, the Tigers had scored 14 unanswered and it was 31-24.

Jaydon Blue had other plans. One part of Texas’ two-headed monster at running back, he exploded 77 yards down the left sideline for a back-breaking touchdown that put the Longhorns up 38-24 with 10:48 to go.

After Klubnik and Adams came up short on back-to-back plays at the 1-yard line, Texas chewed up five minutes of clock before improbably turning it over.

But Clemson couldn’t make any more magic happen, and Klubnik’s pass to receiver T.J. Moore fell incomplete on fourth-and-6 to clinch a UT win.

“It was fun being home, but I wish we would have won,” Klubnik said. “That’s what I came here to do. It wasn’t a vacation. … It was time to come win a football game.”

For Clemson, the focus now turns to 2025.

“Until they got that stop right there and were taking a knee, there was never a moment that I didn’t think we weren’t going to win the game,” Swinney said. “We’ll build on this. It’s a great experience for our guys. They know they’re good enough.”