With a trip to the College Football Playoff National Championship Game against Notre Dame on the line, Texas football battled the Ohio State Buckeyes in a battle between two blue bloods in the national semis at the Cotton Bowl.
Quinn Ewers and Texas football fall short of Ohio State in CFP semis at the Cotton Bowl
Texas had a promising drive going after the opening kickoff on the game's first drive. A spectacular one-handed catch from junior wide receiver Matthew Golden helped the Longhorns get on the plus side of the 50-yard line. But a couple of zero or negative plays stalled Texas's drive on offense and led to a punt.
Ohio State put up the game's first points on a methodical drive that went 90+ yards down the field set the tone on the scoreboard.
But the offensive points were sparse after it looked like Texas and Ohio State would be able to consistently and methodically keep the chains moving against the defenses early in the first half.
Texas got on the board with a big drive before halftime to tie things up at 7 on a touchdown pass from quarterback Quinn Ewers to running back Jaydon Blue. But Ohio State responded with a 75-yard screen pass touchdown from Will Howard to running back TreVeyon Henderson to get the lead back less than 60 seconds after Texas tied things up before halftime.
Ohio State and Texas went back-and-forth in the second half between the two offenses. But a sack-fumble returned for a touchdown by the Buckeyes put the nail in the coffin for the Longhorns' chances in this game.
Here are four takeaways from Texas's loss in the College Football Playoff semis to Ohio State.
Texas's defensive line takes control
Coming into this game, the Longhorns boasted the the two highest-graded defensive tackles in the College Football Playoff semifinals. Vernon Broughton and Alfred Collins had a big impact on Texas's first two Playoff wins over the Clemson Tigers and Arizona State Sun Devils.
Broughton made a big play in the second half when he forced a fumble against Howard that Ohio State's quarterback luckily fell on in the backfield.
Vernon Broughton is a beast in the trenches! pic.twitter.com/DZUTXskV87
— Hook'em Headlines (@HookemHeadlines) January 11, 2025
Texas's defensive front held Ohio State to under 100 rushing yards for the third time this season. Ohio State rushed for just 81 yards and under 3.5 yards per carry.
The defensive line did its job, disrupting the Ohio State passing game and limited the Buckeyes' potent running-back duo of Quinshon Judkins and Henderson on the ground.