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  • Ohio State smothered #1 Oregon in the Rose Bowl, winning by a confident 41-21 result.
  • Texas held off a late surge by Arizona State, avoiding the Peach Bowl loss with an OT win.
  • These two teams last faced off on January 5, 2009, in a game that the Longhorns won 24-21.

In this Cotton Bowl CFP matchup, the Buckeyes face off against the Longhorns. Both teams have earned solid victories, but we continue to favor the lower seed in this Ohio State vs Texas prediction.

Ohio State Continues to Dominate

Ohio State was my pick to win the CFP once the 12-team field was determined. They have done nothing but increase my confidence in that prediction since then. After storming past Tennessee in the first round, they dominated the final undefeated team in the country. A sluggish Oregon was no match for the Buckeyes, who appear to have put their worst result behind them in their regular season finale against Michigan. Ohio State’s balanced roster is capable of testing any opponent.

The Buckeyes lean on QB Will Howard in close games, but they haven’t needed to rely on him much in the CFP so far. Their dual-headed rushing attack has been dominant, and their stacked defense leaves little room for error when going up against them. Ohio State’s defense ranks #1 in the nation, which makes their offense even more difficult to keep pace with. After a poor result against Arizona State, Texas is likely to run into a wall in this game.

Texas Aiming to Right the Ship

Speaking of the Longhorns, they’ll likely tell you a win is a win. As nice as that sounds, the Longhorns did not look all that impressive against the Sun Devils. It’s been an interesting season for a Texas team that faced almost no teams in the top-half of the SEC standings. With two losses to now-eliminated Georgia, Texas has a lot to prove in this game. QB Quinn Ewers has played poorly and seen his draft stock crater over the past couple of months as a result.

Texas managed to win their exciting clash with Arizona State, which gives them a chance to pull off the upset. They have a few factors in their favor, most notably a dangerous front-7 that could make things difficult for Will Howard and Ohio State’s rushing attack. The Longhorns will need to be at their absolute best on both sides of the ball to have a chance of winning this game. An upset win would give them their first chance to win a title since the 2004-05 season 20 years ago.

Ohio State vs Texas Prediction: Buckeyes Remain Hot

The Longhorns enter this game as touchdown underdogs after their narrow victory against Arizona State. A month ago, they may have been favored over Ohio State, but the Buckeyes have been on an absolute surge since then. This game may wind up being closer than expected, but I would be remiss to go against my original prediction at this point in the CFP. Take Ohio State to put up another double-digit victory in this semifinal matchup.

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