The No. 12-seeded Clemson Tigers (10-3) are set to visit the No. 5-seeded Texas Longhorns (11-2) in the third game of the inaugural 12-team College Football Playoffs on Saturday.
The Tigers, who just squeezed their way into the playoffs after taking down No. 8 SMU in the ACC Championship, will have to execute almost perfectly on both sides of the ball if they want to defeat the Longhorns.
Here are three keys to a first-round upset win for Clemson:
Run the ball
Senior running back Phil Mafah, who was awarded a spot on the 2024 third-team All-ACC list, has seen less snaps recently as he has been battling an ongoing shoulder injury.
Mafah, one of the main pieces to the Clemson offense, has totaled eight touchdowns and 1,106 total rushing yards on 214 carries this season.
Despite the nagging injury, the Tigers will need all he can muster against the Texas defense, one of the country’s best run stoppers.
Mafah will need to make the most of every run against the Longhorns since Texas’ defense has only given up four passing touchdowns all season.
Locate Antonio Williams
When the Tigers aren’t attempting to power through with their run game, they should look to target Williams, a 5-foot-11 redshirt sophomore receiver.
The home-grown South Carolina native leads the Tigers in touchdowns this season with 10 while also leading all receivers in total-yards with 838 on 71 receptions.
In six out of the 10 games that Clemson has won this season, Williams has scored at least one touchdown. And in three of those six wins, Williams was able to find the end zone twice.
Head coach Dabo Swinney and Garrett Riley, Clemson’s offensive coordinator, should definitely have Williams circled as a main target in their matchup as he will prove to be crucial en route to a first-round win for the Tigers.
Stay calm
As this is the first-ever College Football Playoff game in Austin, we can expect to see the Longhorn crowd rowdier than ever.
This is only Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnik’s second season as the official starter after backing up former Tiger DJ Uiagalelei in 2022. And the two Clemson receivers who are leading the receiving corps in yards behind Williams — Bryant Wesco Jr. and T.J. Moore — are both true freshmen.
This team is young.
If the Tigers want to stick to their plans and execute, they cannot be intimidated by the crowd and get overwhelmed by the moment.
Kick-off is set for 4:00 p.m. ET, and the game can be viewed on TNT/Max.
