Clemson vs Texas prediction & betting tips - Dec. 21 - College Football Playoff

The Clemson Tigers are on the road to play the Texas Longhorns on Saturday at 4 p.m. ET in the first round of the College Football Playoff. The game can be seen on TNT.

Clemson (10-3) snuck its way into the playoff with a 34-31 win over SMU to win the Atlantic Coast Conference. Texas (11-2) lost 22-19 in overtime to Georgia in the Southeastern Conference championship game.

Clemson vs. Texas: Preview

Clemson is a 12-point underdog, while the over/under is set at 52 points.

The Tigers needed to beat SMU to make the playoff as they nailed a 56-yard field goal as time expired to win the ACC championship. With Clemson winning, it punched a ticket to go on the road to play the Longhorns, which coach Dabo Swinney is looking forward to.

"It's awesome to have the opportunity to be part of the first expanded playoff," Swinney said, via WYFF4. "Unique opportunity to go on the road and play at a great venue against a great football team.

"As a competitor, I've always enjoyed going on the road. It's hard when you have everything against you, but it's fun too. This is as good as it gets. Somebody asked me today, 'what it's going to be like?' I said, 'Well, it's going to be like a normal road game, times a million.'"

Clemson is led by Cade Klubnik, who's thrown for 3,303 yards, 33 touchdowns and five interceptions. Phil Mafah has rushed for 1,106 and eight touchdowns.

Defensively, the Tigers are led by Khalil Barnes with four interceptions. T.J. Parker has 11 sacks and Barrett Carter has 76 tackles.

Texas, meanwhile, lost both of its matchups this season to Georgia. The Longhorns now get to host a home playoff game, which coach Steve Sarkisian is looking forward to. However, Sarkisian knows this game won't be easy as he believes Clemson's offense is legit.

"Clemson's a really good team. Dabo for a long, long time has been winning a lot of games at Clemson," Sarkisian said. "I think this is their seventh College Football Playoff appearance. He's won two national titles.

"And this team really embodies what his teams have embodied over the years. They're really disciplined. Very few penalties. They take care of the football extremely well offensively. They create turnovers on defense."

Texas is led by Quinn Ewers, who has thrown for 2,655 yards, 25 touchdowns and nine interceptions. Quintrevion Wisner has rushed for 863 yards and three touchdowns, while Matthew Golden leads the team with 738 receiving yards and eight touchdowns.

The Longhorns are led by their stout defense, which should be able to get after Klubnik, sack him and likely force a turnover or two.

The atmosphere in Texas will be insane, which will also hinder Clemson's offense as the Longhorns get the big win here.

Prediction: Texas 35, Clemson 17

Clemson vs. Texas: Betting Tips

Tip 1: Texas -12 (-110)

Tip 2: Texas -6.5 first half (-122)

Tip 3: Matthew Golden 61+ receiving yards (-120)

Tip 4: Phil Mafah 50+ rushing yards (-120)