The No. 23 Texas football team beat No. 13 Oregon State 31-27 Saturday night to win the Valero Alamo Bowl in San Antonio. A stout defensive effort–which included 10 sacks– helped set up a fourth quarter David Ash led rally to win, in which he completed a 36 yard touchdown pass to Marquise Goodwin with 2:24 left to play, to give the Longhorns their first lead of the game and the eventual winning score.
Included here some post game quotes, and notes, as well as photos from the 20th Anniversary Alamo Bowl game at the Alamodome in San Antonio:
Texas coach Mack Brown after UT’s 31-27 win over…
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Oregon State in the Alamo Bowl on the play of QB David Ash: “David struggled (against) TCU, he didn’t play at Kansas State, so he hadn’t played in four weeks or something, and he had a new play caller and a new coach, so I he did a tremendous job. Remember, David has never lost a bowl game – he’s 2-0.”
Texas WR Marquise Goodwin after the game: “Coach Applewhite definitely found a way to use me a little more than I was used early in the season. He did a great job coordinating the offense, and he set up great plays, and we just went out there and executed.”
Texas QB David Ash on the offense’s play in the second half: “We just tried to get into a better, quicker rhythm and build on the momentum our defense was creating. By the fourth quarter, Oregon State seemed very winded and were having a tough time lining up right, and we were able to take advantage of that.”
UT DC Manny Diaz on DE Alex Okafor’s monster game: “Alex has been a warrior for us all year long – he deserved to have the kind of game he had tonight because he’s worked so hard and been such a great leader.”
UT co-OC Major Applewhite on Marquise Goodwin, who had a 64-yard TD run and the game-winning TD pass: “This game is about speed and explosive players and make things happen — that’s what Marquise brought to our offense.”
• Texas set a Valero Alamo Bowl record for sacks with 10 against Oregon State. The previous record of 5 is shared by four teams.
• UT DE Alex Okafor’s 4.5-sack performance set an Alamo Bowl record; Okafor also had 9 tackles and a forced fumble in the win.
• Oregon State WRs Brandin Cooks or Markus Wheaton entered the game with more than 1,000 yards receiving this season but were maintained by the UT defense. The first catch for either came with 10:45 remaining in the second quarter. Wheaton had just 26 yards receiving, while Cooks finished with 15 yards.
• After tossing an interception in the third quarter, UT’s David Ash finished by going 9-of-10 passing for 146 yards and two touchdowns.
• Texas once again won a game after winning the turnover battle; the Longhorns only turned the ball over one time in the game, while Oregon State had three turnovers. Texas scored 10 points off turnovers in the game.
• The 2012 Valero Alamo Bowl was once again a back-and-forth, four-quarter showdown, adding to the bowl’s reputation for exciting finishes. Seven of the last eight Valero Alamo Bowls have been decided by a touchdown or less.
• By defeating Oregon State 31-27 in the Alamo Bowl, Texas improved to 31-7 in games decided by four points or less in the Mack Brown era.
• By holding Oregon State to 27 points in the Alamo Bowl, Texas once again held an opponent under their season scoring average. Oregon State entered the game averaging 33 points per game. Texas has held 52 of its last 64 opponents under their season scoring average.
• This was the first time since 2007 that the Alamo Bowl did not feature a 100-yard pass receiver.
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