AUSTIN, Texas -- Steve Sarkisian said he had a simple message for his offensive line and running backs after the Longhorns' SEC title game loss to Georgia, the Longhorns' second loss to the Bulldogs this year.
"Run to win."
Texas ran for just 60 yards in the two games against Georgia -- 29 in a 30-15 loss in Austin in October and 31 in a 22-19 overtime loss two weeks ago.
On Saturday, in the first round of the expanded College Football Playoff, the Longhorns ran for a season-high 292 yards in a 38-24 win over Clemson, running all the way back to Atlanta, the site of that second Georgia loss, with a quarterfinal trip to the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl to face Arizona State on Jan. 1.
"We needed to run the football to win this game," Sarkisian said. "We're going to need to run the football to advance in these playoffs. That's what playoff football's about."
Jaydon Blue, who struggled with an ankle injury early in the season, including missing the UTSA game, reeled off 38- and 77-yard touchdown runs, both on audibles called by quarterback Quinn Ewers, who finished 17-of-24 for 202 yards with a touchdown and an interception.
Blue, who lost four fumbles earlier in the season and was carrying a football around a month ago to highlight ball security after a fumble against Kentucky, had 2 yards on two carries in the two Georgia games. On Saturday, he had a career-high 146, calling it a "sigh of relief."
"Going back to the SEC championship, we didn't run the ball well at all," Blue said. "[Sarkisian] just stayed on us in practice. The O-line, running backs, the whole offense took that in, and we were more physical in practice. He really made a big emphasis on us running the ball."
And the Longhorns managed it despite suffering some injuries in the game to key linemen.
Shortly before halftime, center Jake Majors and right tackle Cameron Williams both were injured. Hayden Conner moved from left guard to center, with backup center Cole Hutson playing left guard and Trevor Goosby at right tackle.
Meanwhile, Clemson's offense was able to press Texas. The Longhorns, which hadn't allowed more than 350 yards to any team this season, allowed 412, including 336 yards and three touchdowns from Tigers quarterback Cade Klubnik, despite allowing just four touchdown passes all year.
The game was a rematch of the Texas state championship game after the 2020 season between Ewers and Klubnik, an Austin native playing against several former high school teammates on the Texas team. One of Klubnik's best friends, Texas safety Michael Taaffe said after the game that he posed challenges to Texas they hadn't seen this year.
"When you look across the sideline, no matter how close you are with the other opponent, they're your opponent," Taaffe said. "We were definitely sharing words back and forth. So that was fun. But then at the end of the game, it's all love. He had a great game. ... He helped us get ready for next Saturday for sure. So hats off to Cade, he's a baller."
But Sarkisian said this team has proved to him that it is versatile and resilient.
"I don't know if this was our best game defensively, but when we had to have it, they made those plays. To me, that's a sign of a great defense," Sarkisian said.
And after Clemson rallied from a 31-10 deficit to 31-24 after Klubnik's third TD throw, Blue was off on that 77-yarder early in the fourth quarter. Sarkisian saw it as a sign of resolve, both for Blue and the Longhorns.
"He was able to continue to work and improve his game, and then have a game like this in the playoff," Sarkisian said. "Just really proud of him, but I think that is kind of symbolic of everybody on our team. Everybody's been dealing with stuff. ... I know one thing about our team, it's that when times get tough, we respond, and Jaydon was a great example of that."
