The Texas Longhorns were in Atlanta less than a month ago, playing for a championship. That game didn’t go the way they hoped. Now, the Longhorns are back in Atlanta for a second chance when they face Arizona State in the Peach Bowl on New Year’s Day, a College Football Playoff quarterfinal.
Texas (12-2), seeded fifth, says it has moved past the disappointment of losing to Georgia in an overtime thriller on Dec. 7. That loss denied the Longhorns a title in their first season in the SEC.
“Of course we’re going to kind of feel that a little bit, but we kind of want to move on and just get ready for Arizona State,” said Texas linebacker Anthony Hill Jr. “They’re a good football team, and we kind of don’t want to think about that (Georgia) game all over again.”
Texas showed no signs of lingering disappointment when they held off Clemson in the first round of the expanded 12-team playoff.
If Texas can beat Arizona State, a two-touchdown favorite, they will return to Texas for a semifinal game against either Oregon or Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl.
Arizona State (11-2), seeded fourth, has been one of the country’s biggest surprises. After a 3-9 record last season in head coach Kenny Dillingham’s first year, Arizona State was expected to finish last in the Big 12 after moving from the declining Pac-12. Instead, the Sun Devils finished tied for first during the regular season and won the Big 12 title by defeating Iowa State.
This game is a chance for Arizona State to show that their remarkable season was not just a fluke.
“We’re going to face one of the best teams in the country, if not the best team in the country,” Dillingham said Tuesday before the game. “It’s a really tall task for our guys. But by the same token, if you’re a competitor, you want to compete versus the very best in the best environments.”
