Penix Jr. shines as Washington edge Texas in offense-fuelled Sugar Bowl

The Rose Bowl was a brilliant spectacle, but the Sugar Bowl took the college playoffs to another level on Monday night.

With a place in the CFB National Championship Game on the line, the Washington Huskies and Texas Longhorns went toe-to-toe in a game filled with huge offensive plays and some of the brightest stars in football. 

Heisman Trophy runner-up Michael Penix Jr. had an exceptional game for the Huskies, throwing for 430 yards and two touchdowns as he led his team to a 37-31 win and they now head to their first ever National Championship Game.

In this high-powered offensive affair, it was Washington’s defence that got off to a strong start. They contained Quinn Ewers and the Texas offense and forced them into punting on their first drive. Washington showed their offensive power instantly. Penix launched a pass to Ja’Lynn Polk, who turned the paly into a 77-yard reception and setup his team on the 2-yard line. Dillon Johnson powered in to put the Huskies up 7-0.

Texas replied with a strong drive of their own. Seven plays, 75 yards, resulting in a Jaydon Blue rushing touchdown from the 5-yard line to tie the game up. 

Both defences stepped up to contain their opposition to end the first quarter tied up at seven. Penix and his offense started to put together a drive early in the second and Tybo Rogers’ 17-yard run took them to the 2-yard line. Johnson would go over again for his second touchdown of the game and put the Huskies out in front once again. 

Coming into this everyone knew it was going to be an offensive shootout. Texas replied straight away thanks to a Germie Bernard fumble on a punt return and setting up the Longhorns inside their opponents 30-yard line. Despite an illegal shift penalty, Byron Murphy II (a defensive lineman) would run in for a touchdown and tie the game up once again. 

The back-and-forth continued with both teams standing strong but the scoring for the first half did not end there. Washington drove down the field for 76 yards, ending in a tip-drill 29-yard receiving touchdown from Polk to put the Huskies out in front. Once again, Texas fired back and just before the end of the half. The Longhorns drove 72 yards down the field to set up a CJ Baxter rushing touchdown and head into halftime with the game tied at 21.

The halftime break allowed both sets of fans to take a breather and settle down from the madness of the first half. They didn’t get too long however, with Washington scoring on their first drive of the second half. Penix was well into his stride and took charge of the game, completing five passes on the drive and rushing for 12. His sixth successful pass of the drive was a 19-yard dart to find Jalen McMillan in the endzone. 

This time Texas didn’t bounce back. Their first play of the second half saw Baxter fumble from a Bralen Trice tackle and setup a filed goal for the Huskies. The Longhorns continued to stall on offense and another Grady Gross field goal early in the fourth quarter put Washington up 34-21.

Another Texas fumble but this time from Blue looked to be the nail in the coffin for them but they refused to give up. A defensive stop gave them the ball back with 11 minutes to play. Quinn Ewers led his side down the field with big completions to Adonai Mitchell and Xavier Worthy, with the former latching onto a fade pass to make it a one-score game. 

However, Penix couldn’t be stopped. A 32-yard completion with his lead receiver Rome Odunze brought the Huskies within field goal range and Gross was good once again to extend the lead to 37-28.

Texas could only add a field goal of their own, but it did bring them within six points with just over a minute to play. Washington gave up consecutive penalties following the onside kick and had to punt away with 45 second remaining. 

Ewers connected with Jordan Whittington for 41 yards and the Longhorns made their way up the field. Back-to-back incompletions left a single second on the clock and with Texas on the 13-yard line. Ewers looked for Mitchell on the fade once again, but Elijah Jackson made a huge play to force the ball out of play and secure his team the 37-31 win.

Washington will now face the Michigan Wolverines in the CFB National Championship Game at the NRG Stadium in Houston.