Dave Wilson, ESPN Staff Writer
AUSTIN, Texas — Coach Steve Sarkisian had a simple message for his offensive line and running backs after Texas lost to Georgia in the SEC title game, giving the Longhorns their second loss of the season to the Bulldogs. I told you.
“Run to win.”
Texas ran for just 60 yards in two games against Georgia — 29 yards in a 30-15 loss in Austin in October and 31 yards in a 22-19 overtime loss two weeks ago. Ta.
On Saturday, the Longhorns gained a season-high 292 yards in a 38-24 victory over Clemson in the first round of the expanded College Football Playoff. Now, they will sprint back to Atlanta, where they suffered their second loss at Georgia State, and head to the quarterfinals of the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl against Arizona State on Jan. 1.
“We had to play football to win this game,” Sarkisian said. “To make it in the playoffs, you have to run the football. That’s playoff football.”
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Running back Jadon Blue, who missed the UTSA game after suffering an ankle injury early in the season, had scoring runs of 38 and 77 yards, both of which he heard quarterback Quinn Ewers call and completed a pass. He completed 17 out of 24 shots. 202 yards, 1 touchdown, 1 interception.
Blue has lost four fumbles so far this season, and although he carried a football to emphasize ball safety after a fumble against Kentucky about a month ago. He had two carries for two yards in two games at Georgia. On Saturday, he rushed for a career-high 146 yards and called it a “sigh of relief.”
“Going back to the SEC Championship, we didn’t run the ball very well at all,” Blue said. “(Sarkissian) has been with us the whole time in practice. The O-line, the running backs, the whole offense has taken that and we’ve gotten more physical in practice. He’s helped us run the ball. He really valued that.”
And the Longhorns managed to come away with a win against Clemson despite having several key linemen injured during the game.
Just before halftime, center Jake Majors and right tackle Cameron Williams were injured. Hayden Conner moved from left guard to center, with backup center Cole Hutson at left guard and Trevor Goosby at right tackle.
Meanwhile, Clemson’s offense was able to put pressure on Texas. The Longhorns, who had not allowed any team more than 350 yards this season, allowed 412 yards, including 336 yards and three touchdowns through the air, to Tigers quarterback Cade Klubnik. Texas had allowed only four touchdown passes to that point all season.
The contest was a rematch of the 2020 Texas state championship game between San Antonio native Ewers and Austin native Klubnik, who faced off against several former high school teammates on the Longhorns team.
Texas safety Michael Taaffe, one of Klubnik’s closest friends, said after Saturday’s game that the signal-caller posed a challenge the Longhorns had never experienced this season.
“When you look across the sideline, no matter how close you are to your opponent, they’re your enemy,” Taaffe said of Krbnik. “We definitely exchanged words. So, it was fun. But at the end of the game, it’s all about love. He played a great game. … Mistakes He helped us prepare for next Saturday.” So hats off to Cade. ”
Sarkisian said this team has proven to be versatile and resilient.
“I don’t know if it was our best game defensively, but they made plays like that when we had to have it. To me, that’s a sign of great defense,” Sarkisian said. spoke.
Blue completed that 77-yard run early in the fourth quarter after Clemson rallied from a 31-10 deficit to make it 31-24 on Krbnik’s third TD throw. Sarkisian saw it as a sign of determination for both the Blues and the Longhorns.
“He continued to work hard and improve his game and was able to have a game like this in the playoffs,” Sarkisian said of Blue. “I’m really proud of him, but I think it’s representative of everyone on our team. Everyone has been dealing with things.
“One thing we know about our team is that we respond when the going gets tough, and Jadon was a great example of that.”
