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In a College Football Playoff semifinal game that featured two of the nation's top quarterbacks, Washington's Michael Penix Jr. outdueled Texas' Quinn Ewers. Just barely.
 
Ewers' pass on the final play of the game – which originated at the Huskies 13 – fell incomplete in the Washington end zone as the second seeded Huskies (14-0) held on for a 37-31 victory against the third seeded Longhorns (12-2) in the 90^th Allstate Sugar Bowl on New Year's Night (Jan. 1, 2024) in the Caesars Superdome before 68,791 fans.
 
Washington, winner of 21 straight, will meet top seed Michigan in the CFP National Championship next Monday (Jan. 8) in Houston.
 
"We believed it,'' Penix Jr. said. "No matter the adversity, we believed the defense was going to get that stop. They've made big time stops in big time moments this season. We were all believing in the defense on the sideline.''
 
"We found another way to win a football game,'' Washington Coach Kalen DeBoer said. "We didn't get the clock down all the way that we wanted to at the end. The defense had to play every down at the end and they did it.''
 
The game promised plenty of offense and it delivered with the teams combining for 1,030 yards.
 
Penix Jr., the game's offensive most valuable player, completed 29 of 38 passes for 430 yards and two touchdowns as Washington rolled up 532 yards of offense. The 430 yard passing performance was the third best in Sugar Bowl history. He also rushed for 31 yards. Ewers had 318 yards passing on 24 of 43 completions with a touchdown and rushed for 54 yards as Texas had 498 yards on offense.
 
Washington had two receivers with better than 100 yards, including Rome Odunze with six receptions for 125 yards and Ja'Lynn Polk with five catches for 122 yards and a touchdown.
 
"Feel like the job isn't finished,'' Penix Jr. said. "I'm going to push myself even harder (for next week against Michigan). I have the best playmakers. They make my job so easy.''
 
Washington looked to have the game sewn up when kicker Grady Gross booted a 27-yard field goal with 2:40 left to give the Huskies a two-score 37-28 lead.
 
Texas drove to the Huskies' 7 on the ensuing possession but the drive stalled and the Longhorns, needing two scores, elected to kick a 25-yard field goal by Bert Auburn to cut the lead to 37-31 with 1:09 to play.
 
Washington recovered the onside kick but couldn't get a first down to run out the clock as Texas had two timeouts left.
 
The Longhorns regained possession with 45 seconds left at its 31 and Ewers quickly moved his team to the Huskies 12 with 15 seconds to play. But that's where the drive stalled.
 
The Longhorns lost one yard on first down then Ewers threw three straight incompletions, including a pass intended for receiver Adonai Mitchell on fourth down near the sideline of the right side of the end zone as time expired.
 
"Those guys (Texas players) are fighters,'' Texas Coach Steve Sarkisian said. "As bleak as it looked there, they never gave up hope and they believed. And I think that's how you give yourself a chance at the end.
 
"Unfortunately, in the game, we dug ourselves a hole with some self-inflicted wounds. And give credit to Washington, they played a very good game. Penix got hot. They made some big plays down the field. And when they extended the lead, we got a little bit out of the game plan to try to fight our way back into it. But we found a way to get a couple stops and force some field goals that gave us a chance to get back into the game.''
 
The numbers were impressive enough for Penix Jr. But he delivered when it was most needed with Texas rallying in the fourth quarter.
 
The Longhorns cut Washington's lead to one score, 34-28, with 7:23 left. But Penix Jr. engineered a 10-play, 65-yard drive that chewed 4:43 off the game clock. Gross' 27-yard field goal with 2:40 left to play gave the Huskies a two-score 37-28 lead.
 
Texas trailed 34-21 early in the fourth quarter but finally regained its offensive footing. Ewers guided the Longhorns on a 72-yard, 10-play drive five passes for 60 yards, including a 1-yard touchdown pass to Adonai Mitchell that cut Washington's lead to 34-28 with 7:23 in the game.
 
The Huskies gained control in the third quarter with Penix Jr. leading the way. He completed 12 straight passes at one point and guided the Huskies to three straight scoring drives that spilled over into the fourth quarter. Texas managed to run only six plays from scrimmage in the third quarter.
 
Penix Jr. led Washington on scoring drives of 70, 24 and 58 yards. Tied 21-21 at the half, the Huskies scored 13 straight points to take a 34-21 lead with 14:57 to play when Gross booted a 40-yard field goal.
 
Texas tied the game shortly before the first half 21-21 with a 10-play drive that covered 72 yards and took only 1:03 to pull off. Quinn Ewers led the drive, completing four of five passes for 36 yards and running twice for 26 yards.
 
Facing third-and-1 at the Washington 28, he scrambled 21 yards to the Huskies 7. Four yards were tacked on to that because of a late hit, giving Texas a first-and-goal at the Washington 3. C.J. Baxter then ran 3 yards for the touchdown that tied the game with 17 seconds to play in the first quarter.
 
Texas' drive followed an impressive nine-play, 76-yard offensive by the Huskies that gave them a short-lived 21-14 lead. Penix Jr. completed five of six passes for 65 yards, including a 29-yard scoring strike to Polk with 1:27 to play in the first half.
 
Washington struck first on its first possession of the game, a scoring drive that benefitted from a 76-yard pass from Penix to Polk that gave the Huskies first-and-goal at the Texas 2. Running back Dillon Johnson ran 2 yards for the score on the next play to give Washington a 7-0 lead with 11:04 to play in the first quarter.
 
Texas answered on the ensuing possession, driving 75 yards in seven plays for a touchdown. Ewers 31-yard pass to Baxter set up Texas in Washington territory at the Huskies 36. Four plays later, Jaydon Blue carried 5 yards for the touchdown to tie the game at 7 with 7:06 left in the first quarter.
 
Washington regained the lead in the second quarter with an 80-yard, nine play drive. Penix Jr. passed for 56 yards on the drive and Johnson ran 1 yard for the touchdown with 13:08 left in the first quarter.
 
Texas tied the game thanks to a turnover by the Huskies. Washington returner Germie Bernard muffed a punt as his 22, which was recovered by Texas Morice Blackwell Jr. Defensive lineman Byron Murphy came on to run 1 yard for the score, tying the game 14-14 with 10:08 to play.
 
 By TREY ILES