Quinn Ewers had looked forward to seeing his old roommate at the Cotton Bowl, but not as up-close-and-personal as Jack Sawyer made the reunion, probably. A strip sack and recovery and interminable 83-yard touchdown run with a little more than two minutes left,

Ohio State outlasted Texas 28-14 to win the Cotton Bowl and clinch their first trip to the College Football Playoff National Championship since 2014. The Buckeyes will face 7-seed Notre Dame at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on Jan.

The Ohio State Buckeyes are National Championship-bound after defeating the Texas Longhorns in the Cotton Bowl, 28-14.

Despite rolling through two wins over Tennessee and then Oregon in the Rose Bowl, Texas’ defense was able to put a lid on Ohio State’s explosive offense. After dominating performances in the first two rounds where the Buckeyes scored 42 and 41 points, the Longhorns’ defense showed up.

The Longhorns battle the Buckeyes with a trip to the College Football Playoff National Championship on the line

Ohio State closed out its regular season with a disappointing win against rival Michigan, and whether that’s been motivation or not, the Buckeyes have turned this around and not looked back.

Both teams roll into Arlington with a pair of losses this year. The Buckeyes lost to Oregon and rival Michigan while the Horns lost to Georgia twice, including in the SEC title game.