Former Texas Longhorns DE Picks Clemson Tigers to Win National Championship

The Texas Longhorns open as big favorites against the Clemson Tigers in the first round of the College Football Playoff, but one former Longhorn believes the Tigers could go all the way.

Sept 25, 2010; Austin, TX, USA; Texas Longhorns defensive end Sam Acho (81) reacts against the UCLA Bruins during the first quarter at Texas Memorial Stadium. UCLA beat Texas 34-12. Mandatory Credit: Brendan Maloney-Imagn Images / Brendan Maloney-Imagn Images

The Texas Longhorns are quickly approaching their second consecutive appearance in the College Football Playoff, with just less than a week between now and the first round, hosted at Darrell K Royal Stadium in Austin. Slotted as the No. 5 seed after failing to secure the SEC Championship title, the Longhorns will play the No. 12-seeded Clemson Tigers in their debut round.

The Tigers took home their respective conference championship as part of the ACC, upsetting the SMU Mustangs in a 34-31 battle that gave Clemson an automatic ticket to the Playoff for being one of the five-highest ranked conference champions.

While Texas is already set as a 10.5-point favorite to win the matchup, according to DraftKings, a former Longhorn has predicted Clemson to not only beat his alma mater, but snag the national title.

ESPN analyst and former Texas defensive end Sam Acho revealed his bracket picks on the sports program's "Championship Drive" show on Saturday, and named the Tigers as this year's national champion, hypothetically taking a win in a rematch against Georgia.

"They've gotten better. They've gotten bigger," Acho said on the show. "Rookies, freshmen have stepped up. Young players have turned into dominant players. T.J. Moore, receiver, Bryant Wesco Jr., receiver, playing better. Cade Klubnik and this entire team learned from their mistake [against] Georgia. It was 6-0 at halftime Week 1, ended up getting blown out.”

Clemson began its 2024 season with a loss against Georgia where the Bulldogs didn't allow a single touchdown from the Tigers, but the program has since looked poised under quarterback Cade Klubnik, coming into the Playoff with a No. 16 rank in the AP Poll and a 10-3 record. Clemson has averaged 35.5 points per game, while Klubnik has thrown for over 3,300 passing yards, 33 touchdowns and just five interceptions and an additional 458 rushing yards.

It's very possible that the Tigers are on their way to their third national title under head coach Dabo Swinney, but beating the Longhorns will take a serious effort, especially with Texas sporting a defense that has held its opponents to just 12.36 points per game.

Clemson and Texas will kick off at 3 p.m. on Dec. 21, with the winner moving on to the second round to face Arizona State on Jan. 1 in the Peach Bowl.

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