NEW ORLEANS - The Texas Longhorns run at a national title finally came to an end on Monday night, with the Horns falling to the Washington Huskies 00-00 in the Sugar Bowl.
It was a sloppy night for the Longhorns in many respects, and though they were able to overcome it in the first half, turnovers and mistakes in the second half would ultimately lead to their downfall.
The first big mistake came on the Horns' first drive of the second half, with Cedric Baxter fumbling on the opening play of the possession. Washington recovered the fumble, leading to a field goal on the other end.
Then after a punt, the Huskies were able to land another field goal to make it a 13-point game at 34-21.
The Horns were on the move on their next drive, getting into Washington territory with relative ease. However, another fumble from a young running back, this time Jaydon Blue, looked like the most costly mistake yet, giving the ball back to the Huskies.
Fortunately for the Horns, they were able to minimize the damage and force a Washington punt, getting the ball back with 11:19 to go in the game.
The Horns were then able to answer with their first touchdown of the half, with Ewers hitting Adonai Mitchell to pull Texas within a score at 34-28.
On the next drive, however, Michael Penix Jr. was able to lead his team down the field for a back-breaking drive, putting the Huskies up two scores at 37-28 with just over two and a half minutes to go in the game.
Texas was able to cut into the lead one more time with a field goal with just over a minute left. And after another stop, and an extremely costly penalty from Washington, Texas had life.
Unfortunately, they were not able to capitalize, with Washington holding on for the 37-31 win, sending them to the College Football Playoff Final to face Michigan in Houston.
More must-reads: