Two of the winningest programs in college football history will square off this Friday when the Texas Longhorns and Ohio State Buckeyes face off in the Cotton Bowl with a coveted spot in the national championship game on the line.
Ohio State is on a roll as of late, coming off impressive wins over Tennessee and #1 ranked Oregon, while Texas comes in off a narrow escape of upset-minded Arizona State. Nonetheless, the Longhorns have a clean slate in this game and will look to punch their ticket back to Atlanta.
Boasting two of the most talented rosters in the country, this game will have future NFL players all over the field. While the winning team will need all players to step up, each team will have a few players with the potential to turn the game in their team's favor.
Here are the players that will be the biggest X-factors for Ohio State and Texas in the upcoming Cotton Bowl.
Ohio State- Emeka Egbuka
All-world true freshman Wide Receiver Jeremiah Smith garners a lot of attention from the media and from opposing secondaries, and rightfully so. Ohio State has made it an extra point of emphasis to get Smith his targets in their two playoff games thus far, and the young buck(eye) has delivered with a combined 290 yards and 4 touchdowns in those games.
The Texas Longhorns will do everything in their power to prevent another big game from Smith, likely double covering or shadowing him with the likes of standout defensive backs Andrew Mukuba and Jahdae Barron. This could provide receiver Emeka Egbuka with ample one-on-one opportunities for the Buckeyes to exploit.
The Senior is the Buckeyes' second leading receiver with 70 receptions, 896 yards, and 10 touchdowns on the year. He has also shown in his career that he is able to step up in big games when teams put their emphasis on another receiver.
In the 2022 CFP Semifinal game against Georgia, Egbuka shone with 8 catches for 112 yards and a score, taking advantage of single coverage throughout the game. WIth the Bulldogs defense focusing more on star receiver Marvin Harrison Jr., Egbuka won his matchups to torch the Bulldogs.
Although that was done in a losing effort, the Buckeyes' coaching staff knows they can count on Egbuka to make a big play if the Longhorns choose to double-team Jeremiah Smith.
Texas - Bert Auburn
The Texas Longhorns are one win away from playing for the national championship and I still have no idea if they are good or not. With as much top-end talent as any team in the country, the Longhorns have shown they can be dominant at times, but also struggle to play consistently when facing quality opponents.
No Texas player has epitomized that inconsistency more than Kicker Bert Auburn. The long-hair having Senior has made 16 of 25 field goal attempts on the season, and is just 6-14 on attempts further than 40 yards. The number of missed kicks is significant, but the timing of them has been killer.
As has been the case for years, Auburn performed poorly against Georgia in the SEC Championship game, missing two field goals in the 3-point overtime loss. Things got worse against Arizona State as Auburn missed two crucial fourth quarter field goals, including the potential game-winner from a mere 38 yards out as time expired, taking the game into overtime.
Auburn's misses in the Peach Bowl gave Arizona State extra life, and the last miss would have cost Texas the game if not for Quinn Ewers' fourth-down heroics in overtime. Texas can't afford to give Ohio State any extra chances on Friday night. Ohio State is clicking on all cylinders right now, and if Texas wants a chance to pull off the upset, they will need to take advantage of every opportunity they get.
It will be interesting to see if Texas and coach Steve Sarkisian adjust their game plan and become more aggressive going for it on fourth down while in field goal range, knowing they can't trust their kicker.
If Sarkisian does call on Auburn in a crucial moment, he better come through. If not, he may be finding his own ride back to Austin.