No. 5 seed Texas and No. 12 seed Clemson are set to clash in a captivating first-round matchup in the College Football Playoff on Saturday afternoon in Austin, Texas.The winner will advance to the CFP quarterfinals, with fourth seed Arizona State awaiting in the Peach Bowl in Atlanta on Jan. 1. Texas opened as a 10 1/2-point favorite in the first-ever meeting between the storied programs, the largest favorite of any first-round game.The Longhorns (11-2) look to rebound from a 22-19 overtime loss to then-No. 5 Georgia in the Southeastern Conference championship. The Tigers (10-3) earned the final spot in the CFP with a last-second 34-31 win over then-No. 8 SMU in the Atlantic Coast Conference championship.Texas battled to the end and beyond in the loss to Georgia, dominating the first half despite quarterback Quinn Ewers playing with a sprained right ankle and with left tackle Kelvin Banks (who won the Outland Trophy as college football’s best interior lineman) on the shelf, also with an ankle injury.Both are expected to be healthy for Saturday’s game. Ewers was asked Monday about his health and his role as the focal point of the Longhorns’ offense.”I feel good. It was good to get some time off,” Ewers explained. “I just try to get the ball to the playmakers and let them go to work at the end of the day. It sounds like a simple answer, but that’s how simple it is.”Both of Texas’ losses this season have been to Georgia, and the two setbacks cost the Longhorns the chance to capture a SEC championship in their first year in the vaunted league.”To come off two weeks after the SEC championship, this game is pretty exciting,” Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said. “One of the concerns always for us as coaches is that long layoff. How do you keep your team sharp and how do you keep them competitive, yet in the same token heal and get healthy?”The Tigers used their considerable big-game experience, the arm and legs of quarterback Cade Klubnik and a 56-yard final-play field goal from freshman kicker Nolan Hauser to advance to the CFP.Clemson battled through a campaign in which it was routed by Georgia in the season opener and lost at home to Louisville and South Carolina.To advance, the Tigers will have to play their best in what’s sure to be an unfriendly venue.