While Jack Sawyer relished in the thrill of victory, Quinn Ewers grappled with the agony of defeat.
As Ryan Day and the rest of the Ohio State Buckeyes celebrated their 28-14 victory on the field of the Cotton Bowl, Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian and two of his key players sat down with the media for a postgame press conference. Sarkisian gave an opening statement in which he applauded the effort of his team in at the end of its campaign before alluding to two decisive plays the game — which later became a key theme among questions from journalists — and offering praise to OSU.
“[Ohio State] Made Two Big Plays... Hit the Screen at the End of the First Half and got the sack fumble on 4th down for a touchdown.... ton of credit to ohio state, they're a very good football team — well coached.” — Steve Sarkisian
After the opening statement, media members pivoted to asking questions of Ewers and Longhorn defensive back Jahdae Barron. Ewers eventually fielded an inquiry regarding his thoughts and emotions surrounding the clinching play for Ohio State that saw Jack Sawyer — his former roommate during his time in Columbus — force a strip-sack for an 83-yard scoop and score.
“Thought I was Going to Be Able to Get the Ball off Before he Got there.... I Saw Jack [Sawyer] Running with the Ball Down the Sideline... It sucks, Man. But he's a great player, great individual, great person... we were roommates when i was up at ohio state... it sucks, but Jack's a good player and he made a great play.” — Quinn Ewers
When the questions went back to Sarkisian, much of the discussion as it related to both teams centered around the goal line stand that ended in Sawyer's touchdown and a 75-yard touchdown reception for TreVeyon Henderson during the final 30 seconds of the first half. Sarkisian noted how after Texas drew a pair of pass interference penalties, the plan was to run the ball in from the one-yard line, but the Buckeyes rotated well defensively and forced the Longhorns into a four-down territorial scenario.
“WHen We Got down to the one... we ran it, obviously didn't get much movement at all. We had a plan to try to get the ball on the edge... [Ohio State] Went to Big People.... One of those plays where if you block it all right, we get in the end zone — and we didn't.... FIrst and GOal on the One and We Don't Score, Quite Frankly We probably don't deserve to Win That way.” — Steve Sarkisian
The head coach at Texas further clarified that he believed even if the Longhorns failed to tie the game that they would have enough time left to force one more stop given what would have been poor field position for Ohio State's offense. The fortuitous turnover that ultimately evolved into a scoring play never allowed for such an opportunity to manifest.
As for the end of the first half, Sarkisian relayed that the touchdown Henderson scored was much more about execution from the Buckeye offense than any over-exertion from the Longhorns to create pressure immediately after kickoff. He called Henderson a "really good playmaker" with "real speed" and admitted Texas entered the game always concerned about what could happen if Ohio State's star running back got into the open field.
The Longhorns end their season with a 13-3 record likely facing a major change in their backfield as the offseason looms. Amid much speculation about Ewers' future in Austin with Archie Manning waiting on deck, a report emerged hours prior to the start of the Cotton Bowl that the former Ohio State quarterback expects to enter the upcoming NFL Draft.
