SAN JOSE, Calif. — Clemson wide receiver Tee Higgins spoke to the media as the Tigers get set to play Alabama in the College Football Playoff National Championship on Jan. 7 in Santa Clara, Calif.

The Tigers are four quarters away from a potential third national title and second in three years.

Question: What did you see from Justyn against Notre Dame and were you surprised at all by his performance?

Higgins: “No, I knew he had it in him. He just needed that game to show it and everybody saw it,” he said.

Question: What is it like for defenses when you guys are on the same side?

Higgins: “I don’t know what they’re thinking over there, but it gives us matchup advantages,” said Higgins. “It’s something we have been working on.”

Question: What is the best part of Justyn’s game and what makes him so special out of the box as a freshman?

Higgins: “He is really physical and has speed. This guy has focus like he is not a freshman and you can tell that he wants to come out and play well,” Higgins said. “He wants to just go and ball out there on the field.”

Question: What was the reaction like to you catch when you checked your phone after the game?

Higgins: “I had a lot of people texting me great catch and what not,” he said. “But, honestly I couldn’t believe I caught it myself.”

“I had to be really focused and didn’t think I got a foot down when I first caught it,” Higgins said. “I looked at my feet in the air but the replay showed my foot down and I said ‘oh yeah, that’s a touchdown.’”

Question: Was that the best catch of your life so far, considering the stage? 

Higgins: “No, I would say my best catch was in the Citadel game last year,” he said. “It was one handed and I scored from like 40-yards out. To me that’s my best catch.”

Question: What was going through your head earlier after that drop?

Higgins: “I was really mad at myself. I went to the sideline and hit 15 push-ups,” Higgins said. “I feel like I have to get pushups to punish myself for dropped passes in the game and in practice.”

“They had a busted coverage and I just got in the end zone and Trevor threw it to me,” he said. “It was just a drop because I lost focus.” 

Question: What makes this offense so explosive? 

Higgins: “It’s just practice, we go out and practice like any other team would. We go out and execute,” Higgins said.

Question: We hear a lot about Clemson’s experience but some of these offensive guys have never played for a national championship. Do you worry at all that you won’t be able to do what you’ve always done?  

Higgins: “No, we just have to be Clemson like we have all year,” Higgins said.