Last night’s Orange Bowl matchup between the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Penn State Nittany Lions ended up being an all-time classic.
There’s a chance tonight’s Cotton Bowl showdown could be even better.
The red-hot Ohio State Buckeyes will face Steve Sarkisian and the Texas Longhorns down in Arlington with the winner punching their ticket to the national championship game.
Ohio State is coming off a dominant performance against top-seeded Oregon in the Rose Bowl, leaving no doubt with a resounding victory.
Meanwhile, Texas emerged from a thriller in the Peach Bowl, edging out Arizona State in double overtime to secure its spot.
For Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers, this game carries extra significance.
Of course, the polarizing star quarterback began his collegiate journey at Ohio State before transferring to Texas.
Now, he’s preparing to face his former team, a storyline not lost on either side.
Ohio State head coach Ryan Day reflected on recruiting Ewers during a recent press conference, sharing a vivid memory of the young quarterback.
“I saw a young boy at the time who just had a tremendous release,” Day said. “I remember grabbing him and grabbing his dad and said, ‘Man, you’ve got a bright future ahead of you. I don’t know if this is good or bad, but we’re going to offer you a scholarship to Ohio State.‘”
Ewers, the top recruit in the nation for the class of 2021 committed to Ohio State but transferred to Texas after his freshman year.
As the college football world knows full well, Ewers has flourished in Austin. (Although he remains very much underappreciated by some Texas fans.)
Reflecting on his time in Columbus, Ewers had nothing but praise for his former team and coaching staff.
“I learned a lot while I was there under Coach Day and then C.J. (Stroud), and just that whole room was awesome to be around, and super thankful for that time that I got to spend there,” Ewers said.
“And, like I said, I learned a whole lot. So I don’t regret any decision I made on going or anything like that.
“But the main reason I went was, I felt like I had a great relationship with the coaching staff, and, you know, they were winning a lot of games, and I wanted to go be a part of something like that.”
(Of course, the NIL money didn’t hurt.)
Ewers, a native of Southlake, Texas, found a homecoming of sorts when he joined the Longhorns.
He has helped lead Texas to back-to-back playoff appearances and has them just two wins away from a national title.
In the Peach Bowl victory over Arizona State, Ewers threw for 322 yards, three touchdowns, and one interception, cementing his role as the centerpiece of Texas’ offense.
If the Longhorns end up winning the national title, Ewers’ incredible touchdown pass on 4th-and-13 against the Sun Devils will go down in Texas history.
Texas’ road to the semifinal included wins over Clemson and Arizona State, while Ohio State routed Tennessee and Oregon.
The Buckeyes enter tonight’s game as a 6-point favorite, but that line could shift as kickoff approaches. (Seems a little high, doesn’t it?)
For Ewers, he’s made it clear that he has nothing but respect for Day and the entire Ohio State program.
Having said that, he and all of Texas will be out for blood tonight.
What is your prediction for the game? … Will Ewers and company upset the Buckeyes and set up a date with the Fighting Irish in the title game???
