Quarterback Michael Penix completed 32-of-54 passes for 287 yards with two touchdowns and an interception to lead No.12 Washington in its 27-20 win over No.20 Texas in the Alamo Bowl in San Antonio.
Washington took a 13-3 lead into halftime. Then, Texas made the deficit 13-10 with a 34-yard touchdown catch and run by Jonathon Brooks from Quinn Ewers to begin the third quarter.
The Huskies responded, with Penix leading back-to-back scoring drives of 75 and 90 yards to stretch their lead to 17 (27-10).
Texas recorded 10 late points to pull within seven via a 3-yard Jonathon Brooks plunge and a 26-yard Bert Auburn field goal with 1:40 remaining, but it did not matter.
The Longhorns failed to recover the ensuing onside kick and did not get the ball back until they stopped the Huskies and took over on their own 16 with 32 seconds. Texas got to the Washington 40 on the final play of the game.
“They did a nice job of extending drives,” Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said. “They had three straight drives of 16, 13, and 14 plays that resulted in 17 points. But in the end, I was proud of our guys. They continued to battle; gave us a chance at the end. We just didn’t make enough plays.”
WHAT TO KNOW
Texas was without Doak Walker Award winner Bijan Robinson and his backfield mate Roschon Johnson as both opted out of the Alamo Bowl to prepare for the 2023 NFL Draft.
Without their top two running backs, the Longhorns managed just 51 yards on 18 carries for an average of 2.8 yards per carry.
Texas turned to the passing game to make up for the absence of their leading rushers, with Ewers throwing for a career-high 369 yards on 31-of-47 passing.
Washington had no such struggles running the ball. Huskies running back Wayne Taulapapa coasted for a 42-yard touchdown that gave the Huskies a 10-3 lead in the first quarter.
The Huskies finished with 153 rushing yards on an average of 5.5 yards per carry.
BY THE NUMBERS
Penix broke Washington’s single-season passing record in the second quarter — surpassing Cody Pickett’s 4,458 yards in 2002.
The fifth-year senior Indiana transfer, who has announced he will return to Washington in 2023, finished the season as the nation’s leading passer with 4,641 yards.
WHO SAID
One particular sequence severely diminished the Longhorns’ comeback chances. Trailing 20-10 in the third quarter from their own 39, Texas wide receiver Xavier Worthy got behind the Washington defense on back-to-back plays.
Ewers hit Worthy in stride both times, but the sophomore receiver dropped what would have been walk-in touchdowns.
After the two Worthy drops, Texas was forced to punt, and Washington then put together a 14-play touchdown drive that gave the Huskies an insurmountable 27-10 advantage with 13:08 left.
“It’s tough, but I didn’t lose any confidence in him and I know he didn’t lose any confidence in himself,” Ewers said of Worthy. “Stuff like that happens every now and then. But it sucks to see it happen in crucial situations like it was.”
Sarkisian was asked about the missed opportunities in the passing game.
“Tonight was kind of a microcosm of how the season went for us,” he said.
NEXT UP
Washington (11-2) goes into the offseason on a seven-game win streak. The 11 wins are the most in a season for the Huskies since 2016.
The loss for Texas (8-5) ends a season that saw a three-win improvement to its record. During Sarkisian’s 2021 debut, Texas went 5-7 and did not qualify for a bowl.
