When Longhorns fans reminisce about the Cotton Bowl in the years to come, they won’t think about Quinn Ewers’ two touchdown throws to Jaydon Blue.

They won’t think about how the Texas defense completely shut down Ohio State freshman sensation Jeremiah Smith, who had just one catch for three yards and was a total non-factor.

They’ll forget about some of the big individual plays, like David Gbenda’s sensational interception, Matthew Golden playing through a foot injury or Will Stone stepping in for his first action at kicker.

They’ll remember only two deciding plays in the 28-14 loss at AT&T Stadium.

First was a demoralizing 75-yard screen pass by Ohio State’s TreVeyon Henderson with 13 seconds left before halftime. And next is Jack Sawyer’s scoop-and-score after an 83-yard run on fourth-and-goal from the Ohio State 8-yard line.

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Steve Sarkisian will forever be haunted by what happened on the goal line against Buckeyes in College Football Playoffs

Texas had four plays from the 1-yard line to tie Ohio State and couldn’t get it done

“Hell of a football game,” Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said. “Two really good teams battling. They made two big plays, you know? They hit the screen at the end of the first half and got the sack fumble on fourth down there for a touchdown.

“I’m really proud of our players for the resiliency they showed tonight to fight back to get into the game, to have an opportunity first-and-goal on the one and weren't able to put it in.

“So as I told them, today's game is the life of a competitor. You put yourself in this arena. You compete your tail off. But we have nothing to hang our heads about, by the way they competed, not only tonight but this entire season.”

For the seniors and those leaving the program, the Longhorns know how close they really were to winning not one but two national titles. Texas lost on the final play of the CFP semifinals against Washington at the end of the 2023 season.

“You know, it’s tough,” said quarterback Quinn Ewers, who is going pro. “I think coach Sark hit it. It’s the life of a competitor. It sucks being on this side of things, for sure. I mean, back-to-back years pretty much a game decided in one play and it's hard.

“All the work that we put in, being in the final four back-to-back years and coming up short two years, it's tough. But I think that's how life is. You're going to get punched in the face in some hard moments.”

Said cornerback Jahdae Barron: “It was a tough situation. I love these guys, and I love coach Sark. He’s changed my life, but he's always told us, Adversity will strike. You just have to respond. But we tried to continue to just fight out there, and we came up short.”