Clemson and Texas square off Saturday afternoon in Austin for a chance to face Arizona State in the Peach Bowl on New Year’s Day.
Even though the No. 5 Longhorns lost their SEC title game to Georgia and No. 12 Clemson beat SMU for the ACC crown, Texas hosts this one at DKR-Texas Memorial Stadium. The Horns had more wins (11) than Clemson (10).
Fans who want to watch this college football playoff game can do so on TNT or MAX for free by using DirecTV Streamthat offers a free trial or with SlingTVwhich does not offer a free trial but has promotional offers available. Max has plans starting at just $9.99 per month and includes movies, original series and more.
WHO: Texas Longhorns vs. Clemson Tigers
when: 4:00 PM ET, December 21, 2024
where: DKR-Texas Memorial Stadium
current:Sling; DirecTV Stream; MAX
Bets: Check out our MA Sports Betting Guidewhere you can learn basic terminology, definitions and how to read the odds for those interested in learning how to bet in Massachusetts.
What is DirecTV Stream?
DirecTV Stream is an Internet TV service that offers your favorite entertainment, news and sports channels, as well as local TV stations and regional sports networks. DirecTV Stream can be purchased for $79.98/month for the first two months when you sign up for the ENTERTAINMENT package and add the DIRECTV sports package.
What is SlingTV?
Here’s what you can watch on Sling TV, with plans starting at $40: Baseball (MLB), Basketball (NBA, NCAAB), Combat Sports (Boxing, UFC, MMA), Football (NCAAF, NFL), Golf, Hockey, Motorsports, Olympic Games, Soccer, Tennis and Wrestling.
What is MAX?
MAX offers a wide variety of content from Warner Bros. Discovery, including movies, shows, documentaries and live sports. Plans start at $9.99 per month.
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Former Lone Star High School Rivals Klubnik and Ewers Meet Again in Clemson-Texas Playoff Game
By JIM VERTUNO AP Sports Writer
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Texas’ Quinn Ewers and Clemson’s Cade Klubnik already have a championship record between them.
Both quarterbacks hail from Texas and were two of the nation’s top-rated junior recruits in January 2021 when they met on the nation’s biggest stage in high school football: the Texas Class 6A state championship.
Klubnik got the best of Ewers that day, leading Austin Westlake to a 52-34 victory over Southlake Carroll. They meet again Saturday when No. 12 seed Clemson (10-3) and No. 5 seed Texas (11-2) square off in the first round of the expanded 12-team College Football Playoff.
For Klubnik, the first step in returning Clemson to a national title starts in his hometown, just a few miles from where he grew up and played at a high school that produced NFL quarterbacks Drew Brees, Nick Foles and Sam Ehlinger.
And it promises an emotional return. When the Tigers and Longhorns were announced as first-round opponents, a camera quickly found Klubnik with a stunned look on his face as Tigers coach Dabo Swinney hugged him.
Then there was talk of the rematch with Ewers, with even bigger goals at stake this time.
“You know, Quinn and I go way back. We were playing in seventh or eighth grade and so on. My junior year in the state championship was definitely a high-profile game,” Klubnik said.
It was more than “high profile”.
Because of the two star quarterbacks and the pedigrees of their programs, their championship game between them has legendary status in a state that has produced too many great college players and games to count.
Klubnik and Westlake had won the state championship the year before. The 2020 season was delayed due to the pandemic, pushing the championship game to 2021. Ewers was the top-rated junior QB in the country, having already committed to Ohio State. Klubnik was ranked as the No. 2 QB in Texas right behind him, but he still wasn’t committed.
Ewers passed for 351 yards and three touchdowns. Klubnik was just as good, going 18-of-20 passing for 220 yards and a touchdown, and another 97 yards rushing.
“That’s not fun when the fastest guy on the field touches the ball 100 percent of the time,” Southlake Carroll coach Riley Dodge said that day.
Klubnik’s Westlake teammates included Michael Taaffe, now a safety at Texas, and Ethan Burke and Colton Vasek, now defensive linemen for the Longhorns.
Taaffe this week described Klubnik as his “best friend” that season at Westlake. He pointed to the school and social disruptions of the COVID season before the championship game.
“There was nothing we could do but throw the football,” Taaffe said. “We had nothing to do but become best friends. We were trying to win a state championship.”
Taaffe did his part in the state championship game, intercepting an Ewers pass in the second half. He would love to do the same with Klubnik. And Taaffe and he won’t pull any punches if he gets a chance to take a sack or a big hit on his old friend.
“My job is to take the soul of my opponent,” Taaffe said. “It doesn’t matter if he’s my best friend or the man I hate the most on this planet.
“Cade does everything it takes to try to win. He will do whatever it takes. I don’t think there will be many slides from Cade on Saturday. I don’t think there are many out of bounds. Especially if he sees (me). He’s definitely going to try to put his shoulder down and explain it to me, too,” Taaffe said.
After that 2021 state title game, Klubnik and Westlake followed it up with another state championship the following season. Some recruiting outlets rated Klubnik as the nation’s No. 1 quarterback in 2022.
He became Clemson’s regular starter last season. His 33 touchdown passes this season helped revive Clemson after an ugly 34-3 loss to Georgia. Klubnik had four TD passes as the Tigers won the ACC Championship to earn their playoff berth, the program’s first since 2020.
Ewers left high school early after the state championship loss. He declared for college that spring and enrolled at Ohio State. His freshman season in 2021 was spent deep on the bench for the Buckeyes before moving to Texas, where he led a rejuvenated Longhorns.
Texas won the Big 12 title last season and made the four-team playoff for the first time. The Longhorns were ranked No. 1 this season for the first time since 2008 and narrowly lost the SEC championship to Georgia in Texas’ first year in the league.
As for facing the Klubnik again, Ewers called it “cool.” Back in high school, Ewers had a mullet haircut that poked out from under his helmet. Now, the most radical thing about him might be a slightly scraggly beard.
“Me and Cade have a good relationship,” Ewers said. “It’s definitely great to be playing with each other again, to come full circle.”
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AP sportswriter Pete Iacobelli in Clemson, S.C. contributed to this report.
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The Associated Press contributed to this article