Alamo Bowl: #20 Texas Longhorns vs. #12 Washington Huskies Preview

Second-year head coach Steve Sarkisian will lead his Longhorns against his former squad in the Washington Huskies in the Alamo Bowl Thursday.

Thursday’s Alamo Bowl will feature the No. 20 Texas Longhorns lead by Steve Sarkisian, facing off against the nation’s second-best offense in total yards per game in the No. 12 Washington Huskies.

After a hopeful start to the season, losses to Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, and TCU left Texas outside of the Big 12 championship game.

Expectations were high for the Longhorns when it was announced that former five-star quarter back Quinn Ewers from Southlake, Texas would transfer from Ohio State. Adding Ewers to an offense featuring Bijan Robinson and Xavier Worthy seemed very appetizing to a team that finished 5-7 in 2021. After narrowly losing to at the time No. 1 Alabama in Week Two with Ewers out most of the game, the expectations only grew for the Longhorns. However, they finished the season 8-4 and 3rd place in the Big 12.

Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. throws a pass during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Washington State, Saturday, Nov. 26, 2022, in Pullman, Wash.  :: AP Photo/Young Kwak

The Huskies come into the Alamo Bowl averaging 521.7 total YPG, only bested by the No. 6 Tennessee Volunteers. Washington’s first-year head coach Kalen Deboer was hired from Fresno State after the Huskies finished 4-8 in 2021. In his first year at the helm, Deboer lead his squad to an impressive 10-2 record. Their success was in no small part to Indiana-transfer QB Michael Penix Jr., who lead the nation in passing with 4,354 yards.

The Longhorns will be shorthanded Thursday as star running back Bijan Robinson from Tuscon, Arizona announced that he will be entering the NFL Draft and will not participate in the Alamo Bowl. Additionally, senior running back Roschon Johnson and fifth-year senior linebacker DeMarvion Overshown will also sit out of the contest according to 247 Sports.

Texas Forever. Thank you, 5🤘 pic.twitter.com/eyPt452GXn

— Bijan Robinson (@Bijan5Robinson) December 19, 2022

While they are not expecting to have any impact players sit out of Thursday’s contest, the Huskies are currently underdogs according to multiple betting platforms.

This game will also feature Texas's head coach Steve Sarkisian going up against his former school for the first time since his two-year stint at USC. Sarkisian coached at Washington from 2009-2013 where he lead the Huskies to a 34-29 record in his five seasons, with his best season being 2013 (8-4) before departing to USC in 2014. 

Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian, center, stands with his team as they sing "The Eyes Of Texas" after defeating Kansas State 22-17 in an NCAA college football game in Austin, Texas, Friday, Nov. 26, 2021. Texas coach Steve Sarkisian on Monday, oct. 24, 2022, apologized for not staying on the field to sing "The Eyes of Texas” after the Longhorns' loss to Oklahoma State and promised it would “never happen again.” :: AP Photo/Chuck Burton, File

Kickoff will be at 8:00 p.m. CST from the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas on Dec. 29.

---

Want to join the discussion? Click here to become a member of the Killer Frogs message board community today!

Follow KillerFrogs on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest TCU news! Follow KillerFrogs on Facebook and Instagram as well. Download the KillerFrogs app on Google Play or in the Apple App Store.