Huskies survive last second challenge from No. 3 Texas for 37-31 win to advance to National Championship
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - JANUARY 01: Michael Penix Jr. #9 of the Washington Huskies celebrates with Jalen McMillan #11 after a touchdown during the third quarter against the Texas Longhorns during the CFP Semifinal Allstate Sugar Bowl at Caesars Supe
It took until the final play – and the final second – of the Sugar Bowl for the Washington Huskies to finally seal the deal, but Elijah Jackson broke up a last gasp pass from Quinn Ewers to Adonai Mitchell to give the Huskies a 37-31 victory over the Texas Longhorns in the Sugar Bowl to advance to the National Championship.
Heisman Trophy runner-up Michael Penix Jr. carved up the Longhorns defense for 430 yards and two touchdowns, Dillon Johnson added a pair of rushing touchdowns, and the Huskies will head to Houston next week to face the top-ranked Michigan Wolverines in search of their first National Championship since 1991.
"I know everybody on the sidelines continued to believe, continued to believe in the defense that they were going to get that stop because they've done it all year," Penix said. "You've seen it so many times each and every week throughout the season, they're coming up with big-time stops in big-time moments. We were just waiting for the play, and it was bound to happen."
The Huskies appeared to have the game fully in hand when Josh Cuevas recovered an onside kick attempt by the Longhorns with 1:06 left to play. However, Washington couldn't pick up the needed first down to run out the clock. Additionally, Johnson was injured on the third down carry, which stopped the clock and saved Texas some time. Then a kick catch interference penalty on the ensuing punt tacked on 15 extra yards to move Texas closer to their goal.
Jordan Whittington hauled in a 41-yard pass to move Texas within reach of the end zone down to the UW 28-yard line with less than 30 seconds remaining. A fingertip catch from Jaydon Blue for 16 yards to the UW 12 with 15 seconds left pushed the Longhorns closer.
But the Huskies defense came through in its biggest test of the year. Jabbar Muhammad forced an incompletion to Mitchell on second down, Mishael Powell pressured Ewers into an incompletion on third down, and Jackson's final breakup booked UW a trip to Houston.
"You love seeing just the team come through and find a way to win," head coach Kalen DeBoer said. "And then when you look at individual performances and you see a guy (in Jackson) who has come so far, even just this year and the confidence he continues to build. And playing corner is so hard. Guys are going to make plays. You get to this level and this type of game and there's going to be a play that's going to be made and being able to just erase it from your mind and go make the next one, he's just really become someone that we can count on."
Much like they did in their Pac-12 Championship victory over Oregon, the Huskies came out strong with a quick stop on Texas' opening drive to give Penix and the Washington offense the chance to strike.
It didn't take long either.
On his first pass attempt of the game, Penix delivered a perfect throw to Ja'Lynn Polk behind cornerback Terrance Brooks for a 77-yard gain down to the Texas 2-yard line. Dillon Johnson crashed into the end zone on the very next snap as Washington quickly seized a 7-0 lead.
The Longhorns answered with a tidy seven-play, 75-yard drive straight down the field sparked by a 31-yard screen pass to C.J. Baxter. Jaydon Blue scored on a 5-yard touchdown run to even the game up less than four minutes after Johnson's opening score.
A terrific catch from Germie Bernard for a 29-yard gain coupled with a 24-yard strike to Rome Odunze fueled the second scoring drive of the game for Washington. Johnson finished the drive with a 1-yard dive into the end zone for his second score of the game to put UW back on top with a 14-7 lead.
The Huskies then made their only mistake of the half that helped allow the Longhorns to keep pace. After the UW defense forced Texas' offense to go three-and-out after Johnson's touchdown, Bernard had Ryan Sanborn's punt slip through his fingers as Texas jumped on the loose ball at the Huskies 22-yard line. It took just four plays from there before defensive tackle Byron Murphy III plowed into the end zone on a 1-yard fullback dive to make it a 14-14 game.
Washington appeared ready to strike again on the ensuing drive only for another self-inflicted error to negate their threat. A 52-yard connection from Penix to Odunze on the first snap of the possession moved UW to the edge of the Texas red zone. However, the Longhorns defense came up with consecutive stops of Johnson on third- and fourth-and-1 attempts by the Huskies to keep the game tied for the time being.
After Texas was unable to generate much on their next possession, Penix delivered another gem. Penix aggressively climbed up in the pocket to avoid unblocked end Ethan Burke and fired a laser to Polk that was briefly juggled after a diving defending attempt by cornerback Ryan Watts for a 29-yard touchdown to restore a Washington lead with 1:27 left in the half.
Penix was not sacked once in the game as he avoided the pressure he did receive deftly. He also added 31 yards rushing on three carries for the Huskies.
"I thought he was just so good with his feet in the pocket and resetting and making throws, things that we know he's capable of doing," DeBoer said. "And with a good defense like we were facing in Texas today, he had to kind of resort to all the tools that he has and all the skill sets that make him special and make him, in my mind, the best player in college football.
"This guy really all month was on another level as far as his mission to make sure that this happened."
Ewers and the Longhorns were once again able to answer Washington's score with one of their own. A 21-yard scramble on third-and-1 by Ewers coupled with a personal foul for a late hit gave the Longhorns on the UW 3-yard line. Baxter scored on the next snap as Texas made it a 21-21 game heading into the locker rooms at halftime.
The Huskies took advantage of getting the ball first out of the break and marched straight down the field for another go-ahead score. An eight-play, 70-yard scoring drive for the Huskies was capped with Penix threading a throw between two safeties to Jalen McMillan for a 19-yard touchdown and a 28-21 lead.
But this time, Texas was unable to answer. Bralen Trice stripped Baxter of the football and Asa Turner recovered for the Huskies at the Longhorns' 33-yard line to give Washington a prime chance to seize control. Texas managed to finally stop UW inside the 10-yard line and force a field goal try, but Grady Gross' 26-yard kick gave the Huskies their first two-score advantage of the night at 31-21.
The third quarter was completely dominated by Washington as they seized control of the game. UW out-gained Texas by a 157-34 margin as the Longhorns had just five offensive plays in the quarter. A 40-yard field goal from Gross early in the fourth quarter extended the lead to 34-21.
The Longhorns were quickly moving downfield on their next drive only for a second turnover in three drives to thwart their attempt to answer. Blue fumbled at the end of a 16-yard catch-and-run as he ran into the back of a teammate and Trice recovered for Washington.
The Huskies weren't able to capitalize on Blue's fumble and Texas managed to punch back on their next opportunity. A perfect 38-yard throw from Ewers over the shoulder of Xavier Worthy on third down moved Texas inside the Huskies' red zone. Ewers then connected with Adonai Mitchell on a well-executed back-shoulder throw for a 1-yard touchdown to get Texas back within reach, 34-28, with 7:23 left to play.
Ewers threw for 318 yards and a touchdown for Texas, and Ewers, Baxter and Blue combined for 177 rushing yards as a trio on 26 attempts with two touchdowns.
But as they've done all season long, Penix and the Washington offense came through when they had to for a clinching drive. A key third down reception from tight end Jack Westover got UW's drive started. A 14-yard screen pass to McMillan moved the Huskies to midfield, and then Penix dropped a pinpoint throw to Odunze over tight coverage up the sideline for 32 yards down to the Texas 10-yard line. A third Gross field goal from 27 yards out restored a two-score lead, 37-28, with 2:40 left to play.
Odunze had six catches for 125 yards to lead Washington, Polk had five catches for 122 yards and a touchdown, and McMillan added five grabs for 58 yards and a score as the playmaking triumvirate shined on the big stage. Washington finished with 532 yards of total offense on the day,
Texas marched downfield as Washington played soft coverage, but the Huskies defense held in the red zone to force a 25-yard Bert Auburn field goal with 1:09 left to play.
The Huskies then had to sweat out the final minute, but finally secured the win at the last possible moment.
"We put ourselves in those situations in practice where we're ready when that happens," Trice said. "And I think you can think we were shook out there, obviously, but we weren't. We were ten toes down, ready to go."