Texas short again of opportunity to end title drought in what might have been finale for Ewers

AOL alleged that Quinn Ewers and the Texas Longhorns once again fell just short of an opportunity to break their long-standing streak without a national championship.

This game could mark the end of the career of the quarterback who led his team to back-to-back College Football Playoff semifinal appearances two seasons in a row.

On Friday night, at the Cotton Bowl, Texas had driven down to the 1-yard line, needing a touchdown to tie the game, but a crucial stripping of the ball by Longhorns' defensive end Jack Sawyer resulted in a subsequent 83-yard fumble return for a touchdown by Sawyer, securing the win with 2 minutes and 13 seconds remaining.

When you win it once and play again the next year, and really just come up short on one play, one key play, it makes it tough," Ewers said. "It's really difficult to experience that consecutively. You know, life is full of ups and downs, some hard moments, and you've just got to deal with them.

In the new year's day semi-final match at the Sugar Bowl.

It will mark the 20th year since the Texas Longhorns last won a championship, which was led by Vince Young in 2005. They also previously won titles in 1963 and 1969.

I'm extremely proud of our players for showing resilience and determination tonight by fighting back and regaining control of the game," Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said. "I told them that in the world of competition, when you put yourself in a challenging situation, you'll be tested and tried, but they can hold their heads high with pride in how they competed, not just tonight, but for the entire season.

After completing 23 passes out of 39 for a total of 283 yards, including two touchdowns, Ewers did not publicly discuss his future plans in the post-game press conference. There were reports circulating before the game that he intends to put his name into consideration for the NFL draft.

The Texas Longhorns, who made their Southeastern Conference debut this year, have already experienced two setbacks - one of which was a home loss to Georgia on October 19 in the regular season, and a second loss to Georgia in overtime in the SEC conference championship game.

At the onset of the season, no one really thought we were in store for a season like this, especially considering it was our first year in the SEC," Ewers said. "Still, we managed to make it all the way to the SEC title game, although ultimately fell short of our goal. Nevertheless, the team shows incredible resilience and consistency in bouncing back from adversity, a truly impressive display of dedication and spirit. I'm incredibly proud of the entire team and I feel fortunate to be part of the Longhorn family.

Ewers, a native of Southlake, Texas, started his college studies at Ohio State, spending one semester there, even rooming with Sawyer. However, he returned to Texas after an abbreviated stint, having seen limited playing time, taking only two snaps and not attempting a single pass for the Buckeyes in 2021.

Texas senior linebacker David Gbenda, who had an interception in his finale, said he believes Lone Star's new head coach, Sarkisian, will seriously upgrade the team. He praises Sarkisian as always able to adjust his approach, and notes that the players are eager to improve and learn from their mistakes, always striving to become better. They're driven to succeed and remain humble, acknowledging what it takes to excel and recognizing where they came up short.

Ewers mentioned that he thoroughly examined the franchise during his participation, inquiring about being finished at the time the question of passing the program to the next generation better than he had inherited it arose.

It's been an incredible experience being a Longhorn and getting to play for the team, plus seeing them make two straight semifinal appearances has been awesome," he said. "I hope we've made the fans happy with our performances this season. Although we came up short, I believe we're taking a positive steps forward as a team.

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