AUSTIN — After Clemson’s press conference, I returned to my seat in the press box to find a fact sheet from the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl about how to apply for admission and a quick look at the media schedule.

This is a not-so-subtle reminder that in the playoffs, the winners move on and the losers focus on Christmas.

The quick reaction here is pretty simple: Clemson fell behind 31-10 early in the third quarter, but fought back early in the fourth quarter to get to 31-24, but every time the offense found success, the defense allowed Chunk running plays This allowed the Longhorns to keep their distance.

The Tigers set season highs in yards (381) and passing yards (305) against Texas’ second-ranked defense. The previous highs were 211 passing yards allowed for Kentucky and 329 total yards allowed for Florida.

There are reasons to be optimistic for next season. Clemson lost by 14 and was behind early, but battled back and was just one point behind the No. 5 seed in the playoffs. Most of the offense is back next season (Cade Klubnik The decision to return is the biggest decision) and playmakers like Bryant Wesco and TJ Moore And Antonio Williams are expected back, along with four starters along the offensive line.

But the defense? Texas rolled for 292 yards on the ground (497 total yards) and eight chunk plays gained 216 yards. The Horns had runs of 22, 12, 38, 16, 11, 19, 77 and 21. This continues that trend, especially towards the end of the season. Louisville rolled for 210 yards on the ground, SMU had 458 total yards (154 on the ground), The Citadel rushed for 288 yards, South Carolina rushed for 267 yards and Pitt totaled 438 yards.

Texas averaged 6.1 yards per rush.

If Clemson wants to get back to the “Mountain,” the defense simply needs to improve. Running fits are sometimes bad. Gap integrity is sometimes poor. There are times when we wonder about the scheme. The tackling is horrible.

There is talent on this side of the ball. It turns out that adding a defensive end to the portal a year ago would have been a good move, because what was put on the market at times was not a good product.

What happens now? With next season so promising, wholesale changes are not in order. But changes need to be made and probably will be made. What are they? We don’t know, but the next few weeks should be interesting.