Ohio State QB Will Howard’s left hand bore the evidence of a hard hit during the first half of the Cotton Bowl on Friday night.
The back of Howard’s hand developed a large bump after he got hit early in the game. According to ESPN, Howard hadn’t gotten any treatment on the sidelines for his hand, but it was clear that something happened to it even if the injury looked worse than it actually was.
It also likely helped a lot that it was Howard’s non-throwing hand. Howard is a righty.
The Buckeyes went on to win 28-14 after a massive fumble return touchdown sealed it in the final minutes. Howard finished 24-of-33 for 289 yards passing with a touchdown and an interception.
Ohio State will play Notre Dame for the national title after beating Texas 28-14 in the Cotton Bowl on Friday night.
The Buckeyes scored 14 straight points in the fourth quarter to seal the game after Texas had tied it in the third quarter. Here are the five plays that defined the game as Ohio State will try to win its first title in a decade.
Texas was just hanging on for much of the first half against Ohio State. The Longhorns opened the game with the ball and turned it over on downs in Ohio State territory. The Buckeyes responded with a 10-play drive that ended with a TD.
You aren’t alone if you felt like the game could become a blowout early. Instead, it was a slog. The teams combined to punt on eight consecutive drives in the first half before Texas finally got on the board with 29 seconds to go before halftime.
The score came when Jaydon Blue raced out of the backfield and caught a perfect pass from Quinn Ewers for the TD. The 18-yard score tied the game at 7-7 and gave Texas fans a fleeting hope that the game would be tied at halftime after the Longhorns converted all four of their third-down attempts on the drive.
Alas, it was not tied at halftime. Ohio State scored on its first play of the next drive after Texas decided to put most of its defenders deeper down the field to prevent against a big play.
That did not work. Ohio State called a screen for Henderson, who waited for his blockers to engage with the first line of Texas’ defense. As they did, Henderson broke through the wall and outraced everyone else to the end zone for a 14-7 halftime lead.
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