No. 12 Washington holds off No. 21 Texas 27-20 in Alamo Bowl

Daniel Dunn-USA TODAY Sports
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SAN ANTONIO – Michael Penix, Jr. threw for 287 yards and two touchdowns and No. 12 Washington held off No. 21 Texas 27-20 on Thursday night in the Valero Alamo Bowl.

Texas scored 10 late points, pulling within seven on Bert Auburn’s 26-yard field goal with 1:40 remaining, then failed on an onside kick try. The Longhorns (8-5) stopped the Huskies (11-2) on the ensuing possession and took over on their own 16 with 32 seconds and got to the Washington 40 on the final play of the game.

“Another big night for the ’22 Huskies,” Washington coach Kalen DeBoer said. “It starts with these guys up here (Penix, Wayne Taulapapa, Bralen Trice). They all played huge huge roles in what happened tonight. It was a culmination of everything we’ve worked on. The things we’ve tried to improve, especially in the latter half of the season.”

Penix finished the season with 4,641 yards passing to break the 20-year-old Washington season mark of 4,458 set by Cody Pickett.

And while Washington relied heavily on the pass game, its had success on the ground with 158 yards, including a 46-yard option TD run by Wayne Taulapapa in the first quarter.

“We were just trying to feel out the game, feel out how the adjusted and reacted to our pass option,” Penix said. “I was like, `OK, I’m going to hand off this time and see how they adjust to it. I knew handing it off to Wayne, we had a good box, and he’ll make anything happen.”

Penix led back-to-back scoring drives of 75 and 90 yards in the second half to stretch the Huskies’ lead to 17. He was 32 of 55, completed passes to eight receivers, and connected with Taj Davis and Jalen McMillan for scores.

“They did a nice job of extending drives,” Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said. “They had three straight drives of 16, 13 and 14 plays that resulted in 17 points. But in the end I was proud of our guys. They continued to battle; gave us a chance at the end. We just didn’t make enough plays.”

Texas was without star running back Bijon Robinson, and rushed for just 51 yards. Robinson, who led the Longhorns with 1,580 yards and 18 TDs, skipped the game to prepare for the NFL draft.

Sarkisian said the game plan was to throw the ball extensively.

Texas had cut a 10-point halftime deficit to 13-10 on 34-yard pass play from Quinn Ewers to Jonathon Brooks on the opening possession of the second half. Ewers was 31 of 47 for 369 yards.

“After that first drive (of the second half), we got rolling,” Ewers said. “It’s always good to get that first touchdown. It’s awesome to have that first drive to score coming out of the locker room. And with our offense, once we get going it’s hard to stop us.”

Washington, which lost out on tiebreakers for a spot in the Pac-12 championship game after a 7-2 league mark, finished on a seven-game winning streak with its second straight bowl victory.

Texas was in its first bowl game under second-year coach Sarkisian.

OPTING OUT

In addition to Robinson, Texas senior running back Roschon Johnson and senior linebacker DeMarvion Overshown opted out to prepare for the NFL draft. No Washington players opted out.

REDEMPTION AT THE ALAMO

The Huskies are 1-1 in the Alamo Bowl. In 2011, Washington – coached by current Texas coach Sarkisian – lost to Baylor 67-56 in the highest-scoring edition of the game.

HOME AWAY FROM HOME

Texas, which traveled 90 miles from Austin, saw its winning streak in San Antonio come to an end. The Longhorns, playing in their third Alamo Bowl in the last four years, beat Colorado 55-23 in 2020 and Utah 38-10 in 2019.

Washington QB Michael Penix Jr. returning for 2023 season

James Snook-USA TODAY Sports
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SEATTLE – Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. said Sunday he will return to the school for his sixth and final season of eligibility in 2023.

Penix announced his decision on social media and it was a surprising one at that. Penix was the national leader in passing this season, throwing for 4,354 yards and led Washington’s turnaround. The No. 12-ranked Huskies went 10-2 in the regular season, finished tied for second in the Pac-12 and will face No. 21 Texas in the Alamo Bowl.

Penix will have a chance at setting Washington’s single-season record for yards passing in the bowl game. He also threw 29 touchdowns this season. Because of his performance this season, Penix saw his NFL draft stock rise to where he was being expected to be a second-day pick at the latest.

In his announcement, Penix wrote, “As I look back on this special season we had, I realized there were so many great moments and things to celebrate, but I KNOW there is so much for out there for this team and the job is still not finished. I can’t wait to be playing in Husky Stadium for the 2023 season!”

Penix started his career at Indiana and showed flashes of stardom while also battling injuries. He transferred to Washington after the 2021 season, a move that reunited him with new Huskies’ coach Kalen DeBoer, who was Penix’s offensive coordinator for one season at Indiana.

No. 24 Washington rallies late, topples No. 6 Oregon 37-34

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EUGENE, Ore. — Peyton Henry kicked a 43-yard field goal with 51 seconds left and No. 24 Washington snapped No. 6 Oregon’s eight-game winning streak with a 37-34 victory Saturday, dealing a blow to the Ducks’ chances for a spot in the College Football Playoff.

Michael Penix Jr. threw a 62-yard scoring pass to Taj Davis to tie it at 34 with 3:07 to go after Oregon quarterback Bo Nix limped off the field on the previous series.

Nix returned after Henry’s field goal and got the Ducks (9-2, 6-1, No. 6 CFP) to the Washington 38 but the final drive fizzled with a penalty. The Huskies (8-2, 5-2, No. 25 CFP) won in Eugene for the first time since 2016.

Penix threw for 408 yards and two touchdowns as Washington stopped a 13-game losing streak against ranked Oregon teams. The last win was in 2002 when the Huskies beat No. 23 Oregon 42-12. Washington was 0-7 against the Ducks when they’re ranked in the top 10.

Nix fell after a 2-yard run on third-and-5 on the Washington 10 and he limped off the field. Cameron Lewis’ 26-yard field goal finished the drive to make it 34-27 with 3:54 left. He was replaced for a series by backup Ty Thompson.

Nix threw for 280 yards and two scores, and ran for 59 yards and another touchdown. The loss snapped a 23-game home winning streak, the third-longest streak in the nation and a win shy of the school record.

Penix went into the game as the national leader in passing yards per game with 359.1. He had a streak of eight straight games with 300 or more yards passing that just ended last week in a victory over Oregon State.

The Huskies scored on their opening series when Penix handed off to Wayne Taulapapa, who dashed 13 yards down the middle for the TD.

The Ducks settled for a 43-yard field goal from Lewis on their first drive. Henry kicked a 30-yarder to make it 10-3 early in the second quarter.

Oregon got to the 1 on the ensuing drive but the snap was fumbled and Washington recovered. The Huskies did not move the ball and instead the Ducks had good field position ahead of Nix’s 10-yard TD dash, his 14th of the season, to pull Oregon within 13-10.

After Nix hit Dont’e Thornton with a 46-yard touchdown pass on Oregon’s first drive of the second half for a 17-13 lead, Cameron Davis scored on a 3-yard run to put the Huskies back on top.

Noah Whittington’s 29-yard scoring run gave Oregon a 24-20 lead midway through the third. It was a back-and-forth duel the rest of the way.

A 76-yard touchdown pass from Penix to Ja’Lynn Polk gave the Huskies a 27-24 lead in the third quarter. Nix answered with a 67-yard touchdown pass to Troy Franklin.

Jeffrey Bassa’s interception of Penix at the goal line to start the fourth quarter appeared to shift the momentum to the Ducks until Nix’s untimely injury.

THE TAKEAWAY

Washington: Washington hasn’t visited Eugene since 2018, when Oregon won 30-27 in overtime. The Huskies got a boost from the full return of linebacker Edefuan Ulofoshio, who missed the first eight games of the season recovering from a knee injury. He saw a few snaps last weekend in the victory over Oregon States.

Oregon: Oregon missed out on going 7-0 in Pac-12 play for the first time since 2019. … The loss snapped a run that saw Oregon win 16 of the last 18 over the Huskies. In addition to snapping the overall winning streak in Eugene, the loss also snapped a school record 17 straight conference games at home.

UP NEXT

Washington: The Huskies host Colorado next Saturday.

Oregon: The Ducks host No. 13 Utah next Saturday.