Ohio State football coach Ryan Day backs 'legend' Jack Sawyer following game-winning Cotton Bowl sequence

Ohio State manager Ryan Day was jubilated pursuing his team's 28-14 triumph implicit Texas in the Cotton Bowl Friday night. Still, adjacent much importantly, he praised linebacker Jack Sawyer for 1 of the biggest plays successful programme history.

As Texas was going successful to necktie the people astatine 21 precocious successful regulation, a strip-sack fourth-down fumble-turned-touchdown from Sawyer, the aforesaid Buckeyes subordinate negatively labeled for his relation successful the post-game Michigan flag-planting incident, yet earned his large moment.

"I can't accidental capable astir Jack Sawyer," Day told ESPN pursuing the win. "He's a feline who loves being a Buckeye, who loves his teammates. He's done everything we've asked him to do. He's a captain. He's everything we could inquire for successful a skipper to marque a play similar that successful that moment. We talked astir it earlier the crippled – [do] you wanna permission a bequest behind? You go a legend. He conscionable became a fable astatine Ohio State."

Sawyer said helium had a antithetic recollection erstwhile the shot was successful his hands.

“S––t, conscionable don’t autumn similar Will [Howard] did," Sawyer told reporters. "Nah, I’m kidding.”

The Buckeyes instrumentality to the nationalist rubric crippled other Notre Dame Jan. 20 successful Atlanta, Ga. The Fighting Irish stunned Penn State connected a game-winning tract goal, 27-24 aft a now-infamous Drew Allar interception to Christian Gray made it possible.

Day promised that Ohio State would observe for 24 hours earlier opening Notre Dame prep. Both teams person flooded their ain adversity, and they person each the makings of an instant classic.

Soon, the imaginable classical volition beryllium history, arsenic the Big Ten attempts to triumph consecutive titles successful the CFP epoch portion Notre Dame seeks to extremity a 36-year title drought.

While 1 squad has to lose, assemblage football's pageantry volition stay connected afloat show done its melodramatic postseason conclusion. And that's wherefore the obsessiveness remains paramount.